INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Refugees

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development (a) how much and (b) what forms of aid have been provided by her Department to help refugees and displaced persons in (i) Armenia, (ii) Azerbaijan and (iii) Georgia.

Clare Short: The table sets out, by country and by purpose, the support my Department has provided to help refugees in the south Caucasus since 1999 (the first year in which direct assistance with the refugee problem was provided).
	
		£ 
		
			  Humanitarian Naturalisation/ Community development Conflict prevention 
		
		
			 Armenia
			 2000 — 660,000 — 
			 2001 — — 18,150 
			 Azerbaijan
			 1999 208,500 — — 
			 2000 240,000 70,000 — 
			 2001 — — 18,150 
			 Georgia
			 1999 97,850 — 250,620 
			 2000 100,000 100,000 124,145 
			 2001 — — 180,000 
		
	
	My Department also provided block funding to UNHCR totalling £9.46 million in 2000–01 (the latest year for which figures are available). It is not possible to make a direct attribution, but a proportion of this funding will have supported the UNHCR refugee programmes in the south Caucasus.

Refugees

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what discussions she has had with (a) UN, (b) Russian and (c) EU representatives regarding the refugee situation in (i) Armenia, (ii) Azerbaijan and (iii) Georgia.

Clare Short: Regular discussions are held with UNDP, UNHCR and UNFPA about the progress of south Caucasus refugee programmes to which my Department has contributed. My Department also responds to appeals made by those agencies on a case-by-case basis.
	There has been no discussion of the issue with representatives from the Russian Federation, nor any substantive discussion with the European Union.

Refugees

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what discussions she has had with (a) Armenian, (b) Azeri and (c) Georgian authorities regarding (i) the refugee situation, (ii) the return of people to their homes and (iii) improving living conditions in the refugee camps.

Clare Short: My Department's assistance towards alleviating the refugee problem in Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia is directed through the Red Cross, UN agencies and non-governmental organisations.
	Discussions with the Governments of the region are therefore wholly concerned with reviewing the progress of those programmes to which my Department has contributed.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

National Stadium

Tim Yeo: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  if she will place in the Library a copy of correspondence between Ministers and officials in her Department and Mr. Ken Bates on the subject of (a) Wembley National Stadium Ltd. and (b) an English national stadium since 1 May 1997;
	(2)  if she will place in the Library a copy of correspondence between Ministers and officials in her Department and the (a) chairman and (b) directors of Wembley National Stadium Ltd. since 1 May 1997.

Richard Caborn: holding answer 21 May 2002
	No. Such correspondence is covered by the exemptions set out in Part II of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information which cover third party commercial confidences and information given in confidence. This is in line with the practice observed by previous Governments. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has already placed in the Library of the House an exchange of correspondence between herself and Sir Rodney Walker, the then chairman of Wembley National Stadium Ltd., in answer to a question from my hon. Friend the Member for Brentford and Isleworth (Ann Keen) on 14 February 2002, Official Report, columns 597–98W. This exchange contained an explanation of the Government's commitment to the project for the benefit of WNSL's then bankers and others who were or might become involved in the Football Association's project. Given it was essentially a public commitment, my right hon. Friend considered it important that Parliament should see its contents. This was done with the consent of Wembley National Stadium Ltd.

Historic Buildings (Public Access)

Mr. Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  what action the Government are taking to link receipt of funding to improve buildings of historical interest to increased access for members of the public; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  which properties in London have received funding from (a) English Heritage and (b) the Heritage lottery fund in each of the last 10 years for improvement works; and how many of these properties allow access to members of the public for (a) one day a year, (b) one week a year and (c) more than one week a year.

Kim Howells: holding answer 24 June 2002
	Over the last 10 years English Heritage has grant-aided 295 properties in London. Of these 166 were administered under the Historic Buildings and Monuments Act 1953. These grants are conditional on the provision of public access. The level of access depends on the circumstances of the case and the size of the grant. Opening arrangements for the properties which receive grants are available on English Heritage's website at www.english-heritage.org.uk and in "Hudson's Historic Houses and Gardens" directory.
	Grants to the remaining 129 properties were administered under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 and the Local Government Act 1985 for exterior work and essential structural repairs. These grants were to Grade II listed buildings or buildings in conservation areas. There is no automatic access requirement, although some of these properties are open to the public.
	Since 1994 the Heritage lottery fund has made 238 awards to historic buildings in London. Public access is an important consideration in awarding grants. The Heritage lottery fund recognises the central role of access in achieving its overall aim to use heritage funding to improve people's quality of life. The organisation is committed to developing the widest possible constituency for heritage, and to promoting access, equality of opportunity and inclusion in all activities.

EU Directives

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will list the EU directives relating to her Department which have been (a) amended and (b) repealed in 2002.

Kim Howells: Council directive 93/7/EEC on the return of cultural objects unlawfully removed from the territory of a member state was amended by directive 2001/38/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council.
	Council Regulation (EEC) No. 3911–92 on the export of cultural goods was amended by Council Regulation (EC) No. 974–2001.
	No EU directives relating specifically to my Department have been repealed in 2002.

EU Directives

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will list the EU directives and regulations that have been implemented through her Department in 2002; and what was the cost of each to public funds.

Kim Howells: Directive 2001/38/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council, which amended Council directive 93/7/EEC on the return of cultural objects unlawfully removed from the territory of a member state, was implemented by SI 3972–2001 which came into force on 1 January 2002. There was no cost to public funds.

Ice Rinks

Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many ice rinks have (a) closed and (b) opened since 1995.

Richard Caborn: Three ice rinks have closed since 1995, one each in Sunderland, Stevenage and Richmond. The ice rink in Altrincham is due to close in April 2003.
	Three ice rinks have also opened since 1995, one each in Nottingham (National Ice Centre), Coventry and Birmingham. A fourth ice rink is due to open in Sheffield in May 2003.

National Lottery

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when she will make a statement on the review of procedures for the allocation of the operating licence for the National Lottery provider.

Richard Caborn: We published last week a consultation document setting out a number of possible changes to the future licensing and regulation of the Lottery which is available on the DCMS website at www.culture.gov.uk Copies may also be obtained, free of charge, from the Department.

Tourism (Lancashire)

Peter Pike: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many tourists visited Lancashire in the last year.

Kim Howells: Provisional figures from the Office for National Statistics show that in 2001 210,000 visits were made to Lancashire. Overnight stays in the county are shown as 1.4 million and visitor spend is £56 million.

Digital Television

Tim Yeo: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make an assessment of the benefits to the consumer of a digital terrestrial television service being (a) wholly free to air and (b) partly free to air and partly pay.

Kim Howells: holding answer 1 July 2002
	The licences surrendered by ITV digital have been re-advertised by the Independent Television Commission. I understand that the ITC have received six applications. Some of the applicants propose a wholly free to air service, other a mix of free to air and pay channels. Decisions on the licence awards are not a matter for the government but for the ITC which aims to announce the new licensees by 4 July.

Clarence House

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the projected cost is to public funds of the refurbishment of Clarence House; on what works public funds will be spent; and if she will make a statement.

Kim Howells: Detailed surveys are currently taking place to ascertain the extent of the Clarence House refurbishment works, which include work on fire compartmentation, automatic fire detection, upgrade of electrical and mechanical services and some redecoration. It is not possible to provide a firm estimate of the cost of the refurbishment until the completion of these surveys. The refurbishment will be funded from the current level of grant in aid for the maintenance of the Occupied Royal Palaces.

Broadband

Michael Connarty: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps she is taking to publicise the benefits of access to broadband services.

Stephen Timms: I have been asked to reply.
	I am convinced that broadband services have an important role to play in increasing the competitiveness of the UK economy. I have therefore taken several opportunities to promote the benefits of broadband including by supporting the 'Demand: Broadband' campaign run by the Communications Workers Union.
	The UK Online Annual Report 2001 sets out the Government's broadband strategy. To stimulate demand for current broadband content and applications the Government will:
	work with the broadband supply industry to facilitate an industry-wide collaborative campaign to promote the benefits of broadband and give impartial advice on the different technological options available.
	provide more encouragement to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to adopt e-commerce solutions. The DTI are now expanding the £66 million 'UK online for business' programme to:
	provide more effective advice to businesses on the introduction and setting up of e-business solutions, with particular emphasis on the benefits of broadband; and
	introduce a web-based guide to broadband availability for SMEs and a network of demonstrators of practical applications.
	We have also established a £30 million fund to help the Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) and devolved Administrations develop innovative schemes to extend broadband networks. Using this fund, some of the RDAs and devolved Administrations are carrying forward work which demonstrates the benefits of broadband.

DEFENCE

Trident Acquisition Programme

Nigel Beard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the latest estimate is of the cost of the Trident Acquisition Programme; and if he will make a statement.

Geoff Hoon: The current estimate of the total acquisition cost of the Trident programme, with payments already made expressed at the prices and exchange rates actually incurred and future spend at the current financial year rate (the hybrid) estimate, is now £9,800 million. Since the 2001 estimate and leaving aside the effects of price inflation and exchange rate variation (+£11 million), there has been a real cost increase of £25 million. This increase derives principally from additional costs associated with dockyard projects and with missiles and related equipment, offset by a reduced acquisition cost for the four submarines. Expenditure on the Trident acquisition programme to 30 September 2001 represented over 98 per cent. of the total estimate. If all expenditure, past and projected, is brought up to this current year's economic conditions (the non-hybrid estimate) the estimate is £14,376 million.
	The programme continues to show an overall reduction in real terms on its original 1982 estimate. This reduction, including the savings resulting from the decision to process missiles at the United States facility at Kings Bay, Georgia, now stands at over £3.7 billion at current prices.
	The proportion of the estimate for work undertaken in the United Kingdom continues to be around 70 per cent.
	Three in-service Vanguard class submarines are successfully maintained for continuous at-sea deterrence, with the fourth, HMS Vanguard, now undergoing a planned major overhaul.
	
		Estimate table -- £ million
		
			  US UK Total 
		
		
			 Hybrid
			 Previous estimate (2001) at 2000–01 economic conditions (£1:$1.6086) 2,859 6,904 9,764 
			 Real changes +18 +8 +25 
			 Price inflation on unspent balance 0 +3 +3 
			 Exchange rate variation on unspent balance +8 n/a +8 
			 Revised estimate at 2001–02 economic conditions (£1:$1.46) 2,884 6,916 9,800 
			 
			 Non-hybrid
			 Previous estimate (2001) at 2000–01 economic conditions (£1:$1.6806) 3,604 10,058 13,662 
			 Real changes +18 +8 +25 
			 Price inflation +62 +252 +313 
			 Exchange rate variation +375 n/a +375 
			 Revised estimate at 2001–02 economic conditions (£1:$1.46) 4,059 10,318 14,376 
		
	
	Note:
	Figures rounded to nearest £1 million hence any apparent imbalances.

Ministerial Salaries

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the annual cost was of ministerial salaries in his Department in (a) 1997–98 and (b) 2001–02.

Adam Ingram: The level of ministerial salaries are recommended by the Senior Salaries Review Body. From May 1997, in the Ministry of Defence there was one Cabinet Minister, at an annual salary of £43,991; two Ministers of State, at a total annual salary of £82,963; and one Parliamentary Under-Secretary, at an annual salary of £23,623. From June 2001, there was one Cabinet Minister, at an annual salary of £68,157; one Minister of State, at an annual salary of £35,356; and two Parliamentary Under-Secretaries, at a total annual salary of £87,796.

SA80A2 Rifle

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the performance of the SA80A2 rifle in Afghanistan; and what faults have been reported.

Adam Ingram: The SA80-A2 is operating in a very difficult environment in Afghanistan with both dusty conditions and extremes of temperature. To date, three formal equipment failure reports have been filed from Afghanistan; this under a 100 per cent. fault reporting regime. In an operational environment any concerns are treated very seriously and a specialist team on the ground in Afghanistan is investigating these reports as a matter of urgency.

RAF

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the daily average number of RAF aircraft movements was for each RAF base in the United Kingdom over the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: The information in the format requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. The table details the daily average number of fixed wing and rotary wing aircraft movements over the last five years at current RAF stations. A number of the movements may have been aircraft belonging to the other services. At RAF Brize Norton, RAF Lyneham, RAF Northolt and RAF St. Mawgan, commercial aircraft movements are also included.
	
		
			   1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  
			 Unit F wing R wing F wing R wing F wing R wing F wing R wing F wing R wing 
		
		
			 Barkston Heath 158.4 0.2 173.3 0.1 161.3 0.1 151.3 0.3 129.8 0.1 
			 Benson 103.4 11.7 106.3 28.5 112.9 31.0 74.8 28.1 70.6 35.0 
			 Brize Norton 102.4 4.6 95.1 5.0 93.5 4.7 87.5 4.0 81.7 4.5 
			 Chetwynd 0.1 53.0 0.0 79.0 0.0 82.2 0.0 74.4 0.0 77.8 
			 Church Fenton 75.0 3.0 128.6 1.9 139.6 2.1 150.2 1.7 156.8 1.0 
			 Coltishall 50.2 2.2 67.4 1.3 64.4 1.1 57.1 1.2 75.0 1.3 
			 Coningsby 128.0 0.4 122.5 1.0 101.4 0.3 83.6 0.3 80.3 0.5 
			 Cosford 77.5 4.9 58.6 5.0 64.7 6.4 69.2 7.2 61.2 7.1 
			 Cottesmore 87.1 1.3 107.7 0.7 50.7 0.8 56.7 0.8 69.1 0.7 
			 Cranwell 145.2 0.7 181.8 0.7 164.8 0.8 168.2 0.8 173.2 0.5 
			 Culdrose 25.9 111.5 24.4 73.0 24.9 83.8 21.4 42.2 24.5 68.3 
			 Fairford — — 0.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.4 0.0 
			 Kinloss 94.6 3.1 95.1 3.4 92.5 3.3 102.0 3.2 100.0 2.5 
			 Lakenheath 97.6 0.5 96.2 0.3 81.5 0.4 85.1 0.0 86.3 0.0 
			 Leeming 118.9 4.7 117.7 5.0 129.8 4.0 114.3 4.1 108.1 3.4 
			 Leuchars 98.3 4.7 93.9 6.1 92.9 6.7 89.5 6.1 85.6 6.2 
			 Linton-on-Ouse 125.0 2.1 122.8 2.4 157.8 2.5 139.6 1.8 145.5 1.6 
			 Lossiemouth 89.1 5.2 88.2 5.6 92.2 4.8 83.3 4.6 78.2 5.2 
			 Lyneham 122.8 4.8 131.4 5.6 134.1 4.1 107.1 3.8 95.0 4.2 
			 Manston 111.0 5.2 100.8 4.1 16.1 1.4 — — 1.6 7.6 
			 Marham 47.9 1.3 49.2 1.2 46.3 1.0 45.5 1.0 46.9 0.8 
			 Mildenhall — — — — — — 62.8 7.7 60.2 8.7 
			 Mona 58.0 0.8 74.2 0.9 89.4 0.3 100.4 3.3 89.0 0.2 
			 Northolt 33.5 5.9 32.6 5.4 32.2 5.0 31.7 5.0 31.1 5.0 
			 Odiham 1.6 50.3 2.1 40.7 1.0 38.2 2.9 41.8 3.2 49.4 
			 Scampton 0.4 0.0 0.8 0.0 1.0 0.0 1.0 0.0 28.6 0.1 
			 Shawbury 3.7 108.0 4.1 154.2 3.8 176.4 3.8 154.0 4.3 152.7 
			 St. Athan 39.6 0.6 5.1 0.8 59.3 0.5 54.5 0.7 49.9 0.8 
			 St. Mawgan 42.6 30.9 41.1 26.4 44.2 27.4 44.9 28.2 45.4 31.6 
			 Ternhill 0.0 72.6 0.0 105.0 0.0 95.4 0.0 80.8 0.0 77.8 
			 Topcliffe 60.5 0.4 71.6 0.7 104.4 1.4 92.9 1.1 89.0 1.0 
			 Valley 138.1 9.9 143.7 15.2 162.7 17.4 143.1 14.4 170.7 18.5 
			 Waddington 60.0 3.2 58.6 4.3 58.5 4.8 63.0 3.9 59.2 5.4 
			 Wittering 72.3 0.7 83.8 0.5 73.2 0.7 62.9 0.6 63.4 0.5 
			 Woodvale 89.8 0.2 75.9 0.6 71.6 0.5 90.2 0.6 100.7 1.8 
			 Wyton — — — — — — 82.3 1.9 107.8 2.3 
		
	
	An aircraft movement can be a landing or a take-off and an aircraft may record a number of movements in any one sortie.

Meteor Missile Programme

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent representations he has received from Governments of the partner countries regarding the Meteor missile programme.

Lewis Moonie: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence has not recently received any formal representations from the Governments of the partner countries regarding the Meteor missile programme. He has, however, taken every opportunity to discuss the project with his counterparts in the partner countries as the occasion has arisen.

Meteor Missile Programme

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on how many occasions the German Government have made representations to the British Government regarding the Meteor missile project.

Lewis Moonie: The German Government have made no formal representations to the UK Government since the United Kingdom selection of Meteor in May 2000, to salsify the requirement for a Beyond Visual Range Air to Air Missile for Eurofighter. There has, however, been regular dialogue between UK Ministers and officials and their German counterparts regarding the Meteor missile project.

Meteor Missile Programme

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  when he expects the Meteor missile programme to move into its development phase;
	(2)  if he will make a statement on the future of the Meteor missile programme;
	(3)  if he will make a statement on the Meteor missile programme; and if he expects them to be in service on time.

Lewis Moonie: A draft contract for the development and production of the Meteor missile was sent to our partner nations at the end of April following the conclusion of negotiations with the prime contractor MBDA. A revised and final draft contract was passed to our partners earlier this month. We very much hope that all partner nations will confirm within the next few weeks that they are content for the contract to be signed. Germany will need also to sign the Meteor Memorandum of Understanding, which has already been signed by the other five partner nations.
	Although negotiation of the Meteor contract has taken longer than expected, we assess that Meteor can achieve its planned in-service date with the RAF if the contract is awarded in the near future.

Infantry

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many trained infantry there were in the Army in each year since 1997.

Adam Ingram: The number of trained infantry in the Army in each year since 1997 are detailed in the table:
	
		
			 Date of strength Officer Soldier Total 
		
		
			 1 January 1997 2,673 22,683 25,356 
			 1 January 1998 2,726 22,741 25,467 
			 1 January 1999 2,748 22,232 24,980 
			 1 January 2000 2,753 22,385 25,138 
			 1 January 2001 2,783 22,606 25,389 
			 1 January 2002 2,837 22,619 25,456

Eurofighter

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence where the spare parts for Eurofighter will be stored; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: Spare parts for the Royal Air Force Eurofighter fleet are essential to operations and many are classified as RESTRICTED and above and disclosure of their location could be prejudicial to national security. Therefore, I am withholding this information in accordance with Exemption 1 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information, which relates to defence, security and international relations.

Armoured Regiments

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which armoured regiments have been at (a) high readiness, (b) training year and (c) other tasks in each of the past three years.

Adam Ingram: It is assumed that reference to armoured regiments refers to Royal Armoured Corps (RAC) tank regiments and not Armoured Infantry (IA) Battalions. Those regiments that have been at (a) high readiness, (b) training year and (c) other tasks in each of the past three years are shown in the tables:
	
		
			 Formation readiness cycle (FRC)  Armoured tank regiment 
		
		
			 2002  
			 High readiness The Royal Dragoon Guards (RDG) 
			  King's Royal Hussars (KRH) 
			 Training Royal Scots Dragoon Guards (SCOTS DG) 
			  Queen's Royal Lancers (QRL) 
			 Other tasks The Queen's Royal Hussars (QRH) 
			  2 Royal Tank Regiment (2 RTR) 
			   
			 2001  
			 High Readiness The Queen's Royal Hussars (QRH) 
			  2 Royal Tank Regiment (2 RTR) 
			 Training The Royal Dragoon Guards (RDG) 
			  King's Royal Hussars (KRH) 
			 Other tasks Royal Scots Dragoon Guards (SCOTS DG) 
			  Queen's Royal Lancers (QRL) 
			   
			 2001(1)  
			 High Readiness Royal Scots Dragoon Guards (SCOTS DG) 
			 Training The Queen's Royal Hussars (QRH) 
		
	
	(1) The Formation Readiness Cycle (FRC) as a mechanism to deliver these units at readiness was in its infancy in 2000, hence the declaration of just two armoured regiments, rather than the full six.

Armoured Regiments

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if the Royal Armoured Corps is at establishment strength in personnel.

Adam Ingram: The establishment and strength of the Royal Armoured Corps (RAC) and the Household Cavalry (HCAV) as at 1 May 2002 is detailed in the table:
	
		Trained strength against liability for HCAV/RAC as at 1 May 2002
		
			  Officer Soldier Total 
		
		
			 Liability 855 5,023 5,878 
			 Strength 835 4,940 5,775 
			 Difference -20 -83 -103 
			 Difference (percentage) -2.3 -1.7 -1.8 
		
	
	Manning statistics for the RAC are currently grouped with the HCAV. Work is in progress to provide separate totals for the HCAV and the RAC. I will write to the hon. Member when these figures are available and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.

Armoured Vehicles

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many (a) MBTs and (b) AFVs are held in reserve.

Adam Ingram: There are no Challenger 2 main battle tanks nor other armoured fighting vehicles specifically designated as reserve stock. The greater proportion of the vehicles that make up the fleets are held on the war-fighting establishment. The remainder are either held for training and trials or are undergoing planned maintenance programmes.

Armoured Vehicles

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the recommended establishment number of main battle tanks is for an armoured regiment.

Adam Ingram: The establishment of main battle tanks in an armoured regiment is 58, although the number allocated to each regiment at any given time is dictated by its role in any one year.

Fishing Patrols

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what agreements his Department has with DEFRA in relation to the number of days per year Royal Navy fishery protection vessels must be on patrol; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  how many days on fishery patrol naval vessels have undertaken for MAFF/DEFRA in each of the past five years;
	(3)  when HMS Shetland completed her last fishery protection patrol; and when she will be paid off;
	(4)  when HMS Tyne will carry out her first operational fishery patrol.

Adam Ingram: The Royal Navy carry out fishery protection duties under an agreement with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. The current arrangements run from April 2002 until March 2008. For the current year the Royal Navy has agreed to provide a total of 950 days of fishery protection. This figure is reviewed and agreed annually.
	In each of the last five years the Royal Navy carried out the following number of patrol days:
	
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 2001–02 957 
			 2000–01 977 
			 1999–2000 979 
			 1998–99 1,104 
			 1997–98 1,130 
		
	
	HMS Shetland completed her final fishery protection patrol on 28 June 2002. She will be paid off at the end of July. On current plans, HMS Tyne will carry out her first operational fishery protection patrol in January or February 2003.

Lynx

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Lynx Mk 8 are operational.

Adam Ingram: As of 2 July 2002, there are 24 operational Lynx Mk 8 helicopters.

Harrier

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what evaluation his Department has made of the Harrier II plus programme; and for what reasons he has proceeded with an upgrade of the Harrier GR7 to GR9 specification rather than capabilities offered by Harrier II plus.

Adam Ingram: As I made clear in my answer on 28 February 2002, Official Report, columns 1451–52W to the hon. Member for Broxtowe (Dr. Palmer), the Harrier GR7 is being upgraded to GR9 standard as this best meets our capability requirements. The Ministry of Defence has not conducted a formal evaluation of the capabilities offered by the Harrier II plus programme, but understands that the main capability difference between the Harrier GR9 and the Harrier II plus is in the latter's nose- mounted radar.
	While it would, in theory, be possible to mount a radar in the nose of the GR9, we currently have no requirement to do so. Therefore, no detailed work has been undertaken by the MOD into the practicality and cost-effectiveness of such a modification.
	Such a programme would be at least as complex, lengthy and costly as the Sea Harrier Blue Vixen/ AMRAAM update in the mid-90s. Given the likely considerable cost, time scale and technical risk involved, and the planned entry into service of the Future Joint Combat Aircraft in 2012, the benefits of integrating a radar on to the GR9 Harrier would be of limited duration and utility. Such a programme would also delay the integration of the smart weapons on to the Harrier GR9 required to enable it to continue to conduct its primary role of the delivery of offensive air power from land and sea.

Munitions Depots

Robert Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the anticipated remediation costs will be, including munitions and chemical retrieval, prior to the market sale of Dean Hill munitions depot; and when he expects to put it on the market.

Adam Ingram: Defence Munition (DM) Dean Hill's primary task is (and has been) the storage of munitions. The limited (compared to other Defence Munitions sites) processing facilities at the Dean Hill site have primarily been used for maintenance of munitions and associated stores. There has been no explosives manufacturing on site and hence little anticipated contamination to remediate. This has been confirmed by Land Quality Assessment action and a sum of £216,000 has been included in the Investment Appraisal to cover any "industrial site" remediation identified as necessary during run down and closure activities.
	It is anticipated that Defence Estates will market the sale of the Dean Hill site in 2004–05 once all closure activities have been completed.

Munitions Depots

Robert Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Ministry of Defence police are employed at West Dean Munitions Depot; and how they will be deployed following the closure of the depot.

Adam Ingram: There are currently 21 MDP officers stationed at Defence Munitions (DM) Dean Hill. DM Dean Hill is scheduled for closure by 1 April 2004 and the MDP officers stationed there will be subject to redeployment procedures. We do not envisage any compulsory redundancies of MDP officers.

Munitions Depots

Robert Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many of the employees at the West Dean Munitions Depot are (a) under 25, (b) under 45, (c) under 60 and (d) over 60 in each category, broken down by sex.

Adam Ingram: The age profile and gender of the bearing of 57 Defence Munitions civilian staff currently employed at DM Dean Hill near West Dean village in south Wiltshire is as follows:
	
		
			 Age Male Female Total 
		
		
			 Under 25 4 1 5 
			 26 to 45 (2)19 4 23 
			 46 to 60 18 6 24 
			 Over 60 5 — 5 
			  
			 Total 46 11 57 
		
	
	(2) Includes two members of civilian staff on long term detached duty due to return to DM Dean Hill.

Golden Jubilee

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the estimated cost is of the tri-service Jubilee celebrations held on 27 June.

Adam Ingram: In accordance with the wishes of Buckingham Palace and the direction of the Government it was agreed that there would be no undue expenditure from public funds. The sum of £1.5 million was allocated from the budget of the Royal Naval Base Commander, Portsmouth, towards core project costs and any additional costs will lie where they fell. It will be some months before an accurate assessment of this expenditure could be made, but it will consist primarily of additional travel and subsistence costs.

Defence Assistance

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which countries received expenditure under the (a) defence military assistance fund and (b) the defence assistance fund in (i) 1997–98, (ii) 1998–99, (iii) 1999–2000, (iv) 2000–01 and (v) 2001–02; how much each country received in each year from (A) the defence military assistance fund and (B) the defence assistance fund; how much was used to support defence sales in each case; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: I will write to the hon. Member and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.

Sudan

Hilton Dawson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many personnel his Department has contributed to monitoring the Nuba ceasefire in Sudan.

Adam Ingram: One British colonel was deployed to Sudan in May of this year to act as deputy vice chairman of the joint military mission monitoring the Nuba mountain ceasefire.

Medical Treatment

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the answer of 21 June 2002, Official Report, column 597W, on medical treatment, on what date the Army Training and Recruitment Agency secondary health care initiative commenced and with what budget; by what criteria personnel are treated under the scheme; how many personnel in (a) the Army, (b) the Navy and (c) the RAF have been treated under the initiative and at what cost to his Department in each month since commencement; which health care providers have been used under the scheme; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: The Army Training and Recruiting Agency's (ATRA) secondary health care initiative was formally introduced on 1 April 2001 and the Budgetary sum allocated for the financial year 2001–02 was £1.3 million. Personnel eligible for treatment under the scheme are ATRA trainers or trainees who are referred by their unit general practitioner for investigation, opinion and/or treatment for a condition which is preventing them from continuing with their employment/training. Personnel are referred only when waiting lists at the local Ministry of Defence hospital unit or NHS hospital are deemed excessive. The vast majority of these are Army personnel; a small number of RN and RAF personnel might have been included who were posted to ATRA units, either as trainers or trainees, but these cannot be readily identified. Records held do not allow for numbers treated per month to be easily identified, as an individual may well be treated over a period and therefore feature in more than one month's figures. The costs per month since inception are as follows:
	
		
			 Month Numbers treated Cost (£) 
		
		
			 April 2001 — 35,035 
			 May 2001 — 61,201 
			 June 2001 — 88,289 
			 July 2001 — 77,286 
			 August 2001 — 97,995 
			 September 2001 — 93,581 
			 October 2001 — 129,601 
			 November 2001 — 79,544 
			 December 2001 — 100,397 
			 January 2002 — 136,503 
			 February 2002 — 159,605 
			 March 2002 — 150,262 
			   
			 Total financial year 2001–02 1,351 1,209,299 
			
			 April 2002 — 169,047 
			 May 2002 — 129,788 
			 June 2002(3) — 42,701 
			   
			 Total financial year 2002–03(3) 435 341,435 
		
	
	(3) To 15 June
	The healthcare providers utilised under this scheme have been:
	BMI
	BUPA
	Nuffield Trust
	Caprio
	Independent
	NHS.
	The initiative has proved successful in reducing the average waiting time for both consultation and treatment, enabling trainers and trainees to return to work or training more quickly. The scheme is kept under constant review.

RAF Fylingdales

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what new agreements have been reached regarding the Ballistic Missile Early Warning Station at RAF Fylingdales following the end of the 1972 ABM Treaty.

Adam Ingram: None.

Bereaved Services Families

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what support is given to the widows and families of servicemen who have died.

Adam Ingram: The Ministry of Defence operates a comprehensive Casualty and Compassionate Reporting Policy that extends from the moment of casualty notification all the way through to making arrangements for stress counselling for partners, offering advice on eligibility for pensions, compensation or other financial support and helping with relocation arrangements for surviving dependants.
	The MOD also provides an annual Grant-in-Aid to the Remembrance Travel Department of The Royal British Legion in respect of the War Widows Pilgrimage Scheme. The scheme provides financial assistance to any Service widow, whose husband died and was buried overseas between 1914 and 1967, to visit her husband's grave. The Grant contributes 7/8ths of the cost of a pilgrimage organised by Remembrance Travel and to date has benefited over 4,000 widows. The scheme has recently been extended to 31 March 2005.
	Support to the bereaved partners and family of ex-service personnel also comes from the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association—Forces Help (SSAFA-FH) and the Armed Forces Benevolent organisations for whom the MOD has the utmost appreciation. We are very conscious of the tireless and highly professional way these organisations assist their former colleagues and know how greatly their efforts are valued both by the present Service community and by ex-Servicemen and women.

Ex-servicemen

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what support the Government are giving to voluntary organisations that help ex-servicemen.

Adam Ingram: In keeping with the practice that central Government do not provide funding in direct support of charities' core activities, the Ministry of Defence does not provide any direct financial support to the ex-Service voluntary organisations as they are independent of government and responsible for raising their own funding through private donations.
	Nevertheless, the MOD does provide annual Grants-in-Aid to The Royal British Legion's Benevolent Department to assist with the welfare they provide to distressed Polish ex-Servicemen and also to Remembrance Travel, the Pilgrimage Department of The Royal British Legion. This money is used to fund the War Widows Pilgrimage Scheme which enables Service widows to visit the graves of their husbands who were buried overseas between 1914 and 1967. Finally, a Grant-in-Aid is given to the Victoria Cross and George Cross Association every two years to assist with the travel costs associated with their biennial reunion.

Balkans

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what representations he has received from the US Administration concerning the International Criminal Court and the continued deployment of US forces in the Balkans.

Jack Straw: I have been asked to reply.
	I have been and continue to be in close touch with my US counterpart on this issue, and in particular in respect of draft UN Security Council resolutions renewing the UNMIBH/SFOR mandate for UN peacekeeping forces in Bosnia. My hon. Friend the Member for Rotherham (Mr. MacShane) also discussed the issue with representatives of the State Department and the National Security Council in Washington last week.
	The Government are committed to an effective International Criminal Court. We understand US concerns for their peacekeepers but do not share them. We believe that the Rome statute contains effective safeguards which make it inconceivable that peacekeepers will be investigated or prosecuted by the Court when national investigations or procedures are being carried out. We are working hard with the US and other members of the Security Council to achieve a mutually acceptable solution.

SOLICITOR-GENERAL

Crown Prosecution Service

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Solicitor-General how many (a) lawyers, (b) caseworkers and (c) administrative staff were recruited in (i) 1999–2000, (ii) 2000–01 and (iii) 2001–02; and how many (A) lawyers, (B) caseworkers and (C) administrative staff were employed in the same period in each CPS region.

Harriet Harman: The information requested is in tables, copies of which have been placed in the Library.

Crown Prosecution Service

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Solicitor-General if she will make a statement on the inappropriate attribution of agents' costs to the CPS non-cash limited vote.

Harriet Harman: The CPS is responsible for the payment of fees to counsel agents engaged to prosecute in magistrates courts. Counsel agents attend magistrates courts to undertake routine prosecution work to supplement advocacy by CPS prosecutors. This work is paid for from the cash limited administrative costs budget. In some cases, where specialist advocacy is required, or exceptional preparation time is needed or a case is likely to be lengthy, a special fee is negotiated with counsel and paid from the non-cash limited prosecution costs provision.
	In their quarterly report to the Law Officers for July to September 2001, HM CPS Inspectorate commented on the inappropriate attribution of costs to the non-cash limited prosecution costs provision by some areas. Following receipt of that report, further guidance was issued to area business managers in December 2001.

Crown Prosecution Service

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Solicitor-General what action is being taken in each CPS region to develop qualitative and quantitative performance indicators.

Harriet Harman: The Crown Prosecution Service maintains qualitative performance indicators, both locally and nationally, consisting of records of case outcomes and a measure of attrition within the CPS case load. Procedures are under development to provide local area managers with a standard to measure the quality of case work against which will mirror, to an extent, those used by HM CPS Inspectorate. The CPS also maintains a range of quantitative performance indicators showing the timeliness of key functions such as the delivery of briefs to counsel, the service of committal papers, witness expense payments, the payment of invoices, replies to complaints, and replies to MPs' correspondence.
	The implementation of the Compass Case Management system from December 2003 will enable an important expansion of the Department's range of information.

Crown Prosecution Service

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Solicitor-General what externally approved quality standards have been gained by each CPS region, with specific reference to BS5750 ISO 9000.

Harriet Harman: ISO 9000 is not one of the 'Quality Schemes' used by the Crown Prosecution Service to measure the quality of its processes in meeting the needs and expectations of its customers. The Crown Prosecution Service is using the European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) Excellence Model. This is a comprehensive framework used by a large number of organisations from across Europe both in the public and private sector to assess the strengths and areas of improvement across all its business activities.

PRIME MINISTER

Belfast, South

Martin Smyth: To ask the Prime Minister when he next plans to visit Belfast, South.

Tony Blair: I have no plans to visit the hon. Gentleman's particular constituency in the near future.

No. 10 Downing Street

Tim Collins: To ask the Prime Minister what expenditure was incurred by (a) the No 10 Press Office, (b) the Strategic Communications Unit and (c) the Research and Information Unit (i) in the latest available year and (ii) in 1997.

Tony Blair: For the No. 10 Press Office, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for West Chelmsford (Mr. Burns) on 10 April 2002, Official Report, column 11W.
	For the Strategic Communications Unit (SCU), I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Lewes (Norman Baker) on 23 October 2001, Official Report, column 142W. SCU did not exist in 1996–97.
	The total cost of running the Research and Information Unit (R&I) for the financial year 2000–01 was £432,556. Research and Information provides a single information resource at No. 10, providing policy briefing, library resources and reference material for the Prime Minister and No. 10 staff. R&I did not exist in 1996–97.

No. 10 Downing Street

Tim Collins: To ask the Prime Minister how many staff (full-time equivalents) were employed by (a) the No. 10 Press Office, (b) the Strategic Communications Unit, (c) the Research and Information Unit, (d) the GICS Development Centre, (e) the Media Monitoring Unit and (f) the News Co-ordination Centre (i) in the latest available year and (ii) in 1996–97.

Tony Blair: For information on the No. 10 Press Office, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for West Chelmsford (Mr. Burns) on 10 April 2002, Official Report, column 11W.
	As at 1 April 2002, there were eight members of staff in the Strategic Communications Unit. The unit did not exist in 1996–97.
	As at 1 April 2002, there were eight members of staff in the Research and Information Unit. The unit did not exist in 1996–97.
	Staff numbers in the GICS Development Centre have fluctuated. As at 1 April 2002, there were 16 members of staff. On 1 April 1996 there were 16 members of staff; by 1 April 1997, following cutbacks in its marketing activities and the training and development support it provided to GICS members, the unit had been reduced to eight members of staff.
	Following the Mountfield review of the GICS in 1997, which stressed the importance of high quality staffing, training and development and the exchange of best practice across the service, the unit has gradually returned to its previous staffing level as it has expanded its services to meet this wider remit.
	As at 1 April 2002, there were 12 members of staff in the Media Monitoring Unit. The unit did not exist in 1996–97.
	The News Co-ordination Centre has members of staff drawn from the Civil Contingencies Secretariat in the Cabinet Office. It is activated in an emergency or crisis, to provide a support and co-ordination role for the lead Government Department, when it is augmented by staff from other Departments. The NCC did not exist in 1996–97.

Annual Leave

John Bercow: To ask the Prime Minister what the average annual leave entitlement is for staff in his Office in 2002.

Tony Blair: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him by my hon. Friend the Minister for the Cabinet Office today, Official Report, column 388W.

Summits (UK Delegations)

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Prime Minister how many people attended the G8 meeting in Calgary in June from UK Government Departments; and what the total cost of the visit was.

Tony Blair: I was accompanied by my noble Friend Baroness Amos and 25 officials. It was one of the smallest delegations.
	Since 1999 the Government have published an annual list of all overseas visits undertaken by Cabinet Ministers costing £500 or more during each financial year. The list for the period 1 April 2002 to 31 March 2003 will be published as soon as possible after the end of the current financial year.

Summits (UK Delegations)

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Prime Minister how many people attended the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in March from UK Government Departments; and what the total cost of the visit was.

Tony Blair: Since 1999 the Government have published an annual list of all overseas visits undertaken by Cabinet Ministers costing £500 or more during each financial year. The list for the period 1 April 2001 to 31 March 2002, including the information requested, will be published as soon as possible.

Official Histories

Dave Watts: To ask the Prime Minister what further official histories are planned.

Tony Blair: I have appointed Professor Rodney Lowe of Bristol University as the official historian to write the official history of the Civil Service since Fulton. I have also agreed to a list of topics for future official histories, as follows:
	Privatisation
	The Criminal Justice System
	Chevaline
	Devolution
	Policy towards the former Yugoslavia
	The D Notice System
	A Biography of Desmond Morton.

Sir David Omand

Alan Beith: To ask the Prime Minister who will exercise day-to-day ministerial responsibility for the work to be designated to Sir David Omand in the fields of propriety, ethics and constitutional affairs; and whether he will report to (a) the Cabinet Secretary and (b) other Ministers on these matters.

Tony Blair: On Sir Richard Wilson's retirement, Sir David Omand will lead on propriety, ethics and constitutional issues for which he will be responsible to the next Secretary of the Cabinet and Head of the Home Civil Service, Sir Andrew Turnbull, who will report to the Prime Minister.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Local Government

Lynne Jones: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what Government sources of funding can be used for local government services.

Christopher Leslie: There are several sources of funding which Government provide for local government services. Revenue grants fund day-to-day running costs other than housing. The Government have increased such Government grants by some 20 per cent. in real terms since taking office. Housing is funded through Housing Revenue Account Subsidy and housing grants. Capital expenditure for both housing and other needs is supported through borrowing and credit arrangements and through capital grants provided by central Government.

Local Government

Neil Turner: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what progress is being made on a replacement formula for funding of local government; and if he will make a statement.

Christopher Leslie: As announced by my right hon. Friend the Member for Greenwich and Woolwich (Mr. Raynsford) to Parliament earlier this month, we intend to consult on detailed options for a new system by mid July. We will then implement the new system in time for financial year 2003–04.

Local Government

Clive Soley: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what plans he has to introduce proposals to increase the powers and responsibilities of local authorities.

Christopher Leslie: The Local Government Act 2000 already empowers local authorities to do anything likely to promote or improve the economic, social or environmental well-being of their area. Proposals from the local government White Paper are included in the draft Local Government Bill which my right hon. Friend the Member for Greenwich and Woolwich (Mr. Raynsford) launched for consultation earlier this month. For example, it includes powers to trade and to charge for discretionary services.

Social Housing

Evan Harris: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what assessment he has made of the reasonableness of limits on the prices of houses that can be bought by local authorities for use for social housing in high house price areas.

Tony McNulty: The Government impose no limit on the prices of houses that can be bought by local authorities for social housing purposes. The hon. Gentleman may be referring to a system of total cost indicators, which the Housing Corporation operates as a benchmark for assessing the value for money of social housing development schemes funded through social housing grant.

Single Equality Commission

Paddy Tipping: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what plans he has to establish a single equality commission.

Barbara Roche: I recently announced the start of a project to consider the feasibility of, and options for, a single equality body in Great Britain. I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Bristol, East (Jean Corston) on 14 May 2002, Official Report, column 566W.

Asylum Accommodation

Peter Luff: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State if he will make a statement on his Department's policy on the planning process in relation to the establishment of asylum accommodation centres.

Tony McNulty: The Deputy Prime Minister's policy is to adhere to the procedures set out in part IV of the memorandum to DoE circular 18/84. These require the developing Department to serve a notice of proposed development on the local planning authority.

Regional Government

Anne Campbell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what representations he has received from local government leaders on his White Paper on regional governance.

John Prescott: I have received a number of representations from local government, many of them welcoming our White Paper, "Your Region, Your Choice".

Regional Government

Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State if he will make a statement on the role counties will have in regional government.

John Prescott: I refer the hon. Gentleman to my answer in response to the hon. Member for Faversham and Mid-Kent (Hugh Robertson).

Regional Government

Christopher Chope: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State when he will bring forward legislation to allow for referendums on the Government's proposals for regional government in England.

John Prescott: I cannot pre-empt future Queen's Speeches. But we intend to introduce a Bill to provide for referendums when parliamentary time allows, so that the first assembly referendum(s) can be held during this Parliament.

Regional Government

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State if he will make a statement on his plans to create regional assemblies.

John Prescott: I refer the hon. Member to the statement I made on 9 May 2002, Official Report, columns 275–78. The full detail of our plans to create elected regional assemblies can be found in the White Paper "Your Region, Your Choice", which is in the Library of the House. We are now working to take these plans forward.

Regional Government

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State if he will make a statement on the future of county councils in the Government's plans for regional government in England.

John Prescott: I refer the hon. Gentleman to my earlier answer in response to the hon. Member for Faversham and Mid Kent (Hugh Robertson).

Regional Government

Mark Prisk: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State if he will make a statement on his Department's proposals for regional government affecting Hertfordshire.

Christopher Leslie: Our proposals for regional government and how this will affect all areas of England are set out in the White Paper "Your Region, Your Choice". Copies are in the Library of the House.

Regional Government

Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what proposals he has for a west midlands regional assembly.

John Prescott: Our proposals for elected assemblies in all the regions of England are set out in the White Paper "Your Region, Your Choice". Copies are in the Library of the House.

Business Improvement Districts

Ross Cranston: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what steps he is taking to implement business improvement districts.

Barbara Roche: In the White Paper, "Strong Local Leadership—Quality Public Services", published in December, we detailed our scheme for enabling those places which want to introduce business improvement district arrangements to do so. Implementation requires legislation and the draft Local Government Bill, published on 12 June, contains the necessary primary legislation.

Corporate Governance Inspection Reports

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State if he will make a statement on corporate governance inspection reports.

Christopher Leslie: Corporate governance inspection is a powerful diagnostic tool in determining the corporate and managerial capabilities of a council. A total of 15 corporate governance inspections have taken place since April 2000, and their findings reported to the authorities. These inspections have helped inform the corporate assessment model introduced as part of the comprehensive performance assessment.

Housing Market Renewal Fund

Ian Stewart: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what progress has been made in setting up a housing market renewal fund.

Tony McNulty: The idea of a housing market renewal fund was proposed last autumn by the National Housing Federation, Key Cities Housing Group and the Northern Housing Forums, against a backdrop of severe housing market failure in parts of the country. We are considering the proposal in the context of the current spending review.
	However, we are in no doubt that we must address the problem of low demand housing, which underlies the fund proposal. That is why we have invited nine areas, where the problems are most acute, to work with Government establishing pathfinder projects to tackle low demand. We are making available £25 million from the Capital Modernisation Fund to assist the pathfinder projects in vital preparatory work.

Urban Poverty

Gillian Merron: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what role his Department has in tackling urban poverty.

Barbara Roche: The Government are committed to tackling poverty wherever it is found. Within the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, the Social Exclusion Unit, the Urban Policy Unit, the Neighbourhood Renewal Unit and Government Offices play a crucial role in the Government's work to tackle poverty, both in urban areas and elsewhere. The Department's work on local government, regional policy and housing and planning also makes a critical contribution in this area.

Housing

Sue Doughty: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State how many new affordable homes were built in the UK in the past 12 months.

Tony McNulty: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Member for Tyneside, North (Mr. Byers) to the hon. Member for Newbury (Mr. Rendel) on 21 May 2002, Official Report, column 137.

Rent Restructuring

Iain Coleman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what discussions he has had with local authorities and registered social landlords regarding the Government's future plans for rent restructuring implementation; and if he will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: The Government have consulted fully with local authorities and housing associations at all stages in the development of rent restructuring and will continue to do so.
	In particular, we have recently issued a consultation paper on further changes to the Housing Revenue Account subsidy system to support rent restructuring.

Planning

Julian Lewis: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State Minister if he will make a statement on the future role of county councils in planning decisions.

Tony McNulty: In our consultation paper 'Planning: delivering a fundamental change', published last December, we set out proposals for abolishing structure plans as an unnecessary tier of planning. We invited views on the future role that the counties might play in the planning system in addition to their transport, minerals and waste responsibilities. We are considering the responses made and hope to make a statement this summer. These proposals do not alter the role of the county councils in determining county matter planning applications.

Planning

Mark Hoban: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State if he will make a statement on the operation of the planned local planning advisory service.

Tony McNulty: The idea of a local planning advisory service was mooted in the Planning Green Paper—"Planning: delivering a fundamental change". We will be making a statement on progress with implementing the Planning Green Paper in due course.

Planning

Andrew Turner: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State if he will make a statement on responses to the Government's proposals for planning.

Tony McNulty: The Government have received over 16,000 responses to the consultation on the Green Paper "Planning—delivering a fundamental change". We will be making a statement on the outcome of the consultation in due course.

Homelessness

Richard Ottaway: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what steps he is taking to alleviate homelessness; and if he will make a statement.

Barbara Roche: We have adopted a new approach which focuses as much on the problems homeless people face as the places they live. Our specific measures include £125 million investment this year to tackle homelessness, and new legislation to strengthen the assistance to people who are homeless or at risk of being homeless.

Franchise

Eric Martlew: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what his plans are for reducing the voting age to 16; and if he will make a statement.

Yvette Cooper: I have been asked to reply.
	We have no plans to propose legislation to lower the voting age. We would, however, welcome a public debate on the issue. It is also open to the Electoral Commission to consider it and make recommendations for future policy.

Bed-and-Breakfast Accommodation

Eric Pickles: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what progress has been made on achieving the Government's objective that no child should be living in bed-and-breakfast accommodation by 2004; and if he will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: In March 2002 a £35 million programme was launched to help local authorities ensure that by March 2004 no homeless family with children is in bed-and-breakfast hotels (B&B) other than in an emergency, and even then for no more than six weeks.
	The 44 authorities with the highest number of families with children in B&B were required to submit bed-and- breakfast action plans showing how they will meet the March 2004 commitment. On 17 June £25 million was allocated to these authorities to help them implement their B&B plans. We will now be working with the next 40 highest using authorities to see how we can help them reduce B&B numbers. We will be monitoring closely the progress of all authorities.
	All local authorities will benefit from recent changes to housing benefit subsidy levels, worth up to £10 million, which provide an incentive to lease private sector homes as a better quality alternative to B&B hotels. Authorities have also been sent a 10-point check list of good practice outlining the key 'building blocks' we expect every authority to have in place to deliver reductions in B&B hotel use. Regional B&B 'Good Practice' seminars have been held and examples of good practice have been shared through a newsletter and are posted on the ODPM website.

Mobile Phone Masts

Archie Norman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State who is on the Working Group established to take forward and monitor the operation of the revised Code of Best Practice on Mobile Phone Masts.

Tony McNulty: The Telecommunications Working Group is chaired by the Head of the Department's Development Control Policy Division and comprises representatives of the mobile phone network industry and of central and local government.

Renewal Fund

David Kidney: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State what guidance his Department gives to participants in projects involving funding from the (a) Neighbourhood Renewal Fund, (b) New Deal for Communities and (c) Housing Market Renewal Fund relating to private renting.

Tony McNulty: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister issues guidance relating to the use of grant from the Neighbourhood Renewal Fund in the form of a Special Grant report, one of which is specifically drafted and laid before Parliament for debate and approval prior to each financial year throughout the lifetime of the fund. Special Grant report No. 78 specifies the purpose and allocations of funding and the conditions for use of the grant in 2001–02 and Special Grant report No. 93 sets out the corresponding purpose, allocations and conditions in 2002–03. Copies of the reports are placed in the House of Commons Library, sent to Neighbourhood Renewal Fund grant recipients and made available on the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's website.
	The New Deal for Communities grant is provided under section 126 of the Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act 1996 and section 2 of the Employment and Training Act 1973. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister makes NDC guidance available on its website, including:
	Learning Lessons: Pathfinders' Experiences of NDC Phase 1
	Phase 1 Proposals Guidance for Applicants
	Developing Delivery Plans
	Finance Guidance
	Developing and Testing Ideas
	Gathering Baseline Information
	Outcomes and Milestones
	Support and Advice
	New Deal for Communities and the Single Regeneration Budget—Project Appraisal and Approval
	New Deal for Communities Annual Review 2000–01
	NDC Project Appraisal and Approval Guidance
	Forward Strategies
	Delivering Change
	Monitoring, Review and Evaluation
	Race Equality Guidance.
	The idea of a housing market renewal fund was proposed last autumn by the National Housing Federation, Key Cities Housing Group and the Northern Housing forums, against a backdrop of severe housing market failure in parts of the country. We are considering the proposal in the context of the current spending review.
	However, we are in no doubt that we must address the problem of low demand housing, which underlies the fund proposal. That is why we have invited nine areas, where the problems are most acute, to work with Government establishing pathfinder projects to tackle low demand. We are making available £25 million from the Capital Modernisation Fund to assist the pathfinder projects in vital preparatory work. We have not issued guidance in relation to this funding, but limited criteria must be met before it can be drawn down.

TREASURY

Private Pension Funds

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the total value of private pension funds.

Ruth Kelly: holding answer 1 July 2002
	The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from John Pullinger to Mr. Mark Hoban, dated 3 July 2002
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your parliamentary question on the total value of private pension funds. I am replying in his absence. (63398)
	The market value of the funds held by self-administered pension funds was £765 billion at the end of 2000. These are occupational pension funds where the funds are invested in one or more managed schemes or unit trusts.
	The total value of private pension funds is not available. Private pension funds held by long-term insurance companies are not distinguished from other funds, such as life assurance, within the total long-term fund of the insurance sector on which data are collected by the Office for National Statistics.

Mortgage Tax Relief

Anthony Steen: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will introduce mortgage tax relief for first-time buyers in rural areas.

Ruth Kelly: The Government have no plans to reintroduce mortgage interest tax relief.

VAT

Brian Cotter: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the average time taken was to issue a VAT number for a new business once an application has been filed over the last 12 months.

John Healey: Customs does not maintain statistics on the average time taken to issue a VAT number and it would involve disproportionate cost to produce this information.
	Customs work to a Charter Standard for the processing of applications for VAT registration, requiring 95 per cent. of properly completed applications to be processed within 15 working days of receipt. For 2001–02 Customs received over 180,000 applications for registration and achieved the Charter Standard.

Green Minister

Sue Doughty: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer who his Department's Green Minister is; when they (a) have attended and (b) plan to attend meetings of the Green Ministers' Committee; what the outcomes of meetings were for his Department's activities; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: I am HM Treasury's Green Minister. I was appointed to the ENV(G) committee in June this year.
	Following the general election in June 2001, the previously informal Green Ministers Committee was upgraded to a Cabinet Sub-Committee of ENV and it is established practice under exemption 2 of Part II of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information not to disclose information relating to the proceedings of Cabinet Committees. Therefore I cannot relate progress or outcomes by my Department to anything that has been discussed.

Cancer

Bruce George: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the incidence rates of cancers for the last five years.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Bruce George, dated 3 July 2002
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question on the incidence rates of cancers for the last five years. (66660).
	The latest available information on trends in the incidence rates of cancers for England was published in table 10 in "Cancer Statistics: registrations 1998" Series MB1 No.29, a copy of which is available in the House of Commons Library.

Buildings Value

John Bercow: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the buildings owned by his Department and estimate the market value of each of them.

Paul Boateng: The National Asset Register, published in July 2001 (Cm5221), lists assets owned by each Department and their valuation.

Statutory Instruments

John Bercow: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many statutory instruments have been (a) introduced, (b) removed and (c) amended by his Department since 1 January; and what the (i) cost and (ii) saving has been in each case.

Dawn Primarolo: HM Treasury, HM Customs and Excise and the Inland Revenue have introduced 44 statutory instruments; removed none and introduced 22 amendment instruments since 1 January 2002. Many of the instruments concerned were of a routine nature, for example approving annual fee increases.
	The HMSO SI Registrar Siregistrar@cabinet- office.x.gsi.gov.uk can provide a list of statutory instruments which have been issued by individual Government Departments. SIs which have been originated by Departments but eventually made by the Privy Council are only listed under the Privy Council Office.
	The costs associated with regulatory proposals are considered at the policy development stage. A Regulatory Impact Assessment is completed for regulatory proposals unless there are no or negligible costs. HM Treasury, HM Customs and HM Inland Revenue have produced 13 final RIAs in this period: Implementation of the E-Commerce Directive; Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 Administration Orders Relating to Insurers Order 2002 ("the Order"); Implementation of the electronic money directive; National Insurance Contributions Bill; Fuel Scale Charge; Reform of Intangible Assets; Construction Industry Scheme; R&D Tax Credits for large companies/ vaccines research relief; Exemptions for gains and losses on substantial shareholdings; Reform of the Corporate Debt, Financial Instruments and Foreign Exchange gains and losses regimes; community amateur sports club; VAT: Introduction of a Flat Rate Scheme and Changes to the Annual Accounting Scheme and Oils Fraud Strategy. These are available in the House Libraries and are available on departmental websites.

National Insurance (Reduced Rate)

Steve Webb: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much was paid in aggregate in national insurance contributions by married women paying at the reduced rate in each of the last 30 years.

Dawn Primarolo: Available estimates of the amount of reduced rate contributions paid by married women over the last 27 years are in the table.
	
		
			  Contributions paid by women paying at the reduced rate (£ million) 
		
		
			 1975–76 90 
			 1976–77 100 
			 1977–78 110 
			 1978–79 110 
			 1979–80 120 
			 1980–81 130 
			 1981–82 190 
			 1982–83 220 
			 1983–84 260 
			 1984–85 260 
			 1985–86 260 
			 1986–87 260 
			 1987–88 250 
			 1988–89 250 
			 1989–90 240 
			 1990–91 230 
			 1991–92 220 
			 1992–93 200 
			 1993–94 170 
			 1994–95 160 
			 1995–96 140 
			 1996–97 120 
			 1997–98 100 
			 1998–99 90 
			 1999–2000 60 
			 2000–01 50 
			 2001–02 25 
		
	
	Estimates for 1975–76 to 2000–01 are based on a 3 per cent. sample of the National Insurance Recording System and are rounded to the nearest £10 million.The estimate for 2001–02 was provided by the Government Actuary's Department and has been rounded to the nearest £5 million.

Recycled Paper

Sue Doughty: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proportion of (a) paper and (b) other goods purchased by his Department was recycled paper in each year since 1997; what the annual total cost of these purchases was; what plans there are to increase these proportions; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: The Treasury in all cases purchases on a best value for money basis. Until recently the cost and quality of recycled paper did not provide this compared to virgin paper from sustainable sources and therefore only limited amounts were purchased.
	Recycled paper appears to have improved in both quality and price. It is now the intention of the Department to look again at this issue. If recycled paper currently offers best value for money overall, Treasury will purchase this as the main source of its paper.

Asthma

Annette Brooke: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many deaths due to asthma occurred in each primary care trust in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Ms Brooke, dated 3 July 2002
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your question on how many deaths due to asthma occurred in each Primary Care Trust (PCT) in each of the last three years. (66264)
	PCTs took over the responsibilities of Health Authorities on 1st April 2002, but the geographical definition of all PCT areas has not yet been completed. Mortality statistics for PCT areas are not available at present. The figures requested are available for Health Authorities, the three most recent years being 1998–2000, and these have been placed in the House of Commons Library.
	
		Deaths from asthma by health authority, 1998–2000 -- Number
		
			 Health authority 1998 1999 2000 
		
		
			 Avon 42 52 28 
			 Barking and Havering 16 16 20 
			 Barnet, Enfield and Haringey 30 34 34 
			 Barnsley 30 32 10 
			 Bedfordshire 20 46 28 
			 Berkshire 32 28 36 
			 Bexley, Bromley and Greenwich 40 34 32 
			 Birmingham 66 62 60 
			 Bradford 32 24 32 
			 Brent and Harrow 12 30 20 
			 Buckinghamshire 32 20 30 
			 Bury and Rochdale 20 14 16 
			 Calderdale and Kirklees 50 32 20 
			 Cambridgeshire 20 22 30 
			 Camden and Islington 12 16 14 
			 Cornwall and Isles of Scilly 22 20 24 
			 County Durham and Darlington 44 24 54 
			 Coventry 18 18 32 
			 Croydon 20 14 22 
			 Doncaster 30 24 10 
			 Dorset 38 26 40 
			 Dudley 30 14 6 
			 Ealing, Hammersmith and Hounslow 34 30 34 
			 East Kent 50 46 18 
			 East Lancashire 18 30 24 
			 East London and The City 34 22 38 
			 East Riding and Hull 46 42 32 
			 East Surrey 20 20 28 
			 East Sussex, Brighton and Hove 40 52 36 
			 Gateshead and South Tyneside(4) 12 20 16 
			 Gloucestershire 26 20 32 
			 Herefordshire 20 14 8 
			 Hertfordshire 42 48 40 
			 Hillingdon 8 12 24 
			 Isle of Wight, Portsmouth and South-East Hampshire 48 48 30 
			 Kensington and Chelsea and Westminster 6 26 10 
			 Kingston and Richmond 30 24 24 
			 Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham 34 22 32 
			 Leeds 18 24 30 
			 Leicestershire 34 32 16 
			 Lincolnshire 14 34 36 
			 Liverpool 22 38 16 
			 Manchester 18 10 22 
			 Merton, Sutton and Wandsworth 44 32 38 
			 Morecambe Bay 16 16 20 
			 Newcastle and North Tyneside 16 16 28 
			 Norfolk 50 34 26 
			 North and East Devon 26 20 28 
			 North and Mid Hampshire 30 32 14 
			 North Cheshire 12 6 14 
			 North Cumbria 28 16 12 
			 North Derbyshire 16 12 10 
			 North Essex 50 64 46 
			 North Nottinghamshire 16 36 20 
			 North Staffordshire 16 20 32 
			 North-West Lancashire 30 64 20 
			 North Yorkshire 32 28 38 
			 Northamptonshire 32 26 40 
			 Northumberland 26 22 22 
			 Nottingham 48 26 26 
			 Oxfordshire 30 32 34 
			 Redbridge and Waltham Forest 6 16 26 
			 Rotherham 10 4 14 
			 Salford and Trafford 22 24 30 
			 Sandwell 16 14 24 
			 Sefton 12 20 16 
			 Sheffield 24 18 44 
			 Shropshire 26 14 6 
			 Solihull 4 16 8 
			 Somerset 32 8 24 
			 South and West Devon 46 26 44 
			 South Cheshire 36 22 18 
			 South Essex 30 30 38 
			 South Humber 12 46 16 
			 South Lancashire 12 10 12 
			 South Staffordshire 26 14 30 
			 Southampton and South West Hampshire 32 28 32 
			 Southern Derbyshire 26 52 24 
			 St. Helens and Knowsley 8 24 14 
			 Stockport 14 24 12 
			 Suffolk 30 26 22 
			 Sunderland(4) 8 20 — 
			 Tees 30 26 14 
			 Wakefield 26 52 28 
			 Walsall 26 18 24 
			 Warwickshire 20 36 32 
			 West Kent 34 24 26 
			 West Pennine 36 20 20 
			 West Surrey 42 18 10 
			 West Sussex 22 34 42 
			 Wigan and Bolton 28 24 24 
			 Wiltshire 30 26 38 
			 Wirral 20 12 14 
			 Wolverhampton 24 24 16 
			 Worcestershire 20 36 16 
			 England 2,538 2,524 2,372 
		
	
	(4) Figures for Sunderland in 2000 have been combined with Gateshead and South Tyneside because of small numbers.
	Source:
	Department of Health Compendium of Clinical and Health Indicators 1999–2001, based on data provided by the Office for National Statistics.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Arms Exports

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what her Department's policy was towards arms sales to (a) Pakistan and (b) India between December 2001 and June 2002.

Nigel Griffiths: I refer the hon. Member to the statements made by my hon. Friend the then Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on 15 March 2002, Official Report, columns 1296–98W and by my noble Friend the Lord Sainsbury of Turville in another place on 28 May 2002, Official Report, House of Lords, columns 1147–49.

Arms Exports

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions she has held since December 2001 with the Secretary of State for Defence regarding arms export licence grants to (a) India and (b) Pakistan.

Nigel Griffiths: I refer to the reply given by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence on 2 July 2002, Official Report, column 230W.

Arms Exports

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations she has received regarding her Department's arms export application process and legal criteria for such exports to (a) India and (b) Pakistan in each month from December 2001 to June 2002.

Nigel Griffiths: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, the Department's Export Control Organisation and I have received representations regarding arms exports to India and Pakistan from a number of different sources, including Members of Parliament, exporters and the general public.
	The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Green Minister

Sue Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry who her Department's Green Minister is; when they (a) have attended and (b) plan to attend meetings of the Green Ministers' Committee; what the outcomes of meetings were for her Department's activities; and if she will make a statement.

Brian Wilson: I am DTI's Green Minister.
	Following the General Election in June 2001, the previously informal Green Ministers Committee was upgraded to a Cabinet Sub-Committee of ENV, and it is established practice under exemption two of Part II of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information not to disclose information relating to the proceedings of Cabinet Committees.

LPG Fuel

Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps she is taking to widen the availability of LPG fuel for motor vehicles.

Brian Wilson: At the opening of the 1,000th LPG filling station in February this year I announced LPG Boost, a £1 million DTI funded programme over two years to boost the uptake of LPG as a vehicular fuel. This programme (in conjunction with DTLR funded PowerShift) is aimed at increasing awareness of LPG in rural areas and encouraging local specialist conversion workshops. I will be making a further announcement shortly.

Military Equipment (Licences)

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what licences have been granted in each of the last five years for equipment on the military list to (a) African countries, (b) Bolivia, (c) Guyana, (d) Honduras, (e) Nicaragua, (f) Laos, (g) Vietnam, (h) Myanmar and (i) Yemen, in receipt of aid; what equipment is covered under these licences; and if she will make a statement.

Nigel Griffiths: Details of all export licences for items on the military list issued since 2 May 1997 are published by destination in the Government's Annual Reports on Strategic Export Controls. Copies of the 1997, 1998, 1999 and 2000 Annual Reports are available in the Libraries of the House. The 2001 Annual Report will be published soon.
	In addition, items on the military list might have been exported under certain Open General Export Licences; copies of all Open General Export Licences are also placed in the Libraries of the House.

Housing Associations

Eric Martlew: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans she has to change insolvency rules covering housing associations.

Melanie Johnson: The Enterprise Bill proposes changes to insolvency regulation, which will affect housing associations to the extent that they fall within its scope.
	However, as announced by my noble Friend yesterday during the second reading of the Enterprise Bill, we will be bringing forward express exclusions to ensure that the provisions of the Bill will not extend to registered social landlords.

Postal Services

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the (a) statutory and (b) commercial status of Royal Mail; and to which (i) Ministers and (ii) other persons it will be accountable.

Stephen Timms: Consignia Holdings plc is a company formed and registered under the Companies Act 1985. The shares in the company are owned by the Government. On 26 March 2001, all the property, rights and liabilities of the Post Office were transferred to this company. Consignia Holdings has one wholly owned subsidiary, Consignia plc, which is also a company formed and registered under the Companies Act 1985. This subsidiary is licensed to provide a universal postal service in the UK.
	Under the Government's reform of postal services, Consignia Holdings plc and its subsidiary have been given greater commercial freedom than that enjoyed by the Post Office. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry holds a special share in Consignia Holdings plc and the Memorandum and Articles of Association sets out the areas where the special shareholder's consent is required by the company.
	As a public limited company, Consignia Holdings plc is accountable to its shareholders. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (49,999 shares) and the Treasury Solicitor (as nominee of the Treasury) (1 share).

Postal Services

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what limit of (a) value and (b) weight is set for Consignia's monopoly status; for how long this status extends and under which legal provision; what recent discussions she has had concerning the move to unregulated and competitive postal services; when the change to open competition will take place; and under what statutory requirements.

Stephen Timms: Under the Postal Services Act (2000), the Postal Services Commission (known as Postcomm) was created, as an independent regulatory authority for the licensing of postal services. Postcomm administers a licensed area, broadly equivalent to the former Post Office statutory monopoly for letters weighing less than 350g and costing less than £1. In March 2001, Postcomm granted Consignia a licence to provide services in the licensed area.
	Under the Act, it is for Postcomm to further the interests of users of postal services, wherever appropriate by promoting effective competition between postal operators, subject to its primary responsibility to ensure the provision of a universal postal service at a uniform tariff. Under its statutory powers Postcomm may introduce competition by issuing licenses or by recommending "further exemptions" or reductions to the licensed area.
	In April 2001, Postcomm initially established an interim licensing policy pending a wideranging consultation exercise on how to introduce competition into the market. Postcomm has issued 10 other licences for niche services under this policy. Following the conclusion of its consultation Postcomm announced its decision on competition on 29 May 2002. The effect of that decision is to extend Postcomm's licensing policy to open the postal market to competition in three stages over four years. The first stage to open one third of the market will take effect from January 2003 with increased opportunities for competition in the licensed area and progression to full market opening by 1 April 2007.

Consignia

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent discussions the Government have had with Consignia in relation to keeping open rural post offices.

Stephen Timms: The Government are committed to the maintenance of a nationwide network of post offices and placed a formal requirement on the Post Office in November 2000 to maintain the network and to prevent any avoidable closures of rural post offices. We are in regular contact with Post Office Limited about a range of issues relating to the future of the network.
	The Government have invested £480 million in a modernisation programme to computerise the whole of the post office network. We have made available a £2 million fund to support volunteer and community initiatives to maintain or re-open post office facilities in rural areas where traditional services would otherwise close. Figures for end May 2002 showed that 64 applications—to a value of £500,000—had been assessed and approved and to that date payments of £231,000 had also been made.
	In addition, we have received advice from the Postal Services Commission on transitional financial assistance for the rural network and proposals are being developed in the context of that advice.

Post Offices

David Wilshire: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry which post offices in the Spelthorne constituency Consignia is planning to close.

Stephen Timms: holding answer 2 July 2002
	The programme to restructure the urban post office network has not yet started and I am advised by Post Office Limited that, until it does, there are no specific plans for post office closures in the Spelthorne constituency. When the programme starts it will be taken forward in consultation with individual subpostmasters, the community, local stakeholders and Postwatch. Under the Code of Practice, Post Office Limited is required to consult Postwatch on individual changes and is briefing it on the process envisaged for reaching decisions.
	The objective of the urban network restructuring programme is to provide modernised and improved facilities which meet customers' needs and expectations and are in the right location for the local community.

Public Houses (Drink Measurement)

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on her policy towards full pints of beer being served in pubs.

Melanie Johnson: holding answer 2 July 2002
	In March the Department issued a consultation paper on revised proposals to tighten consumer protection against short measure draught beer and cider. The period for submitting comments on the proposals ended on 1 July and a statement will be made in due course.

Post Office Closures

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list the post offices in the (a) Epsom and Ewell constituency and (b) United Kingdom which Consignia is proposing to close.

Stephen Timms: I am advised by Post Office Limited that no such lists exist. The programme to restructure the urban post office network has not yet started. When it does it will be taken forward in consultation with individual sub-postmasters, the community, local stakeholders and Postwatch. Under the Code of Practice, Post Office Limited is required to consult Postwatch on individual changes and is briefing it on the process envisaged for reaching decisions.
	The objective of the urban network restructuring programme is to provide modernised and improved facilities which meet customers' needs and expectations and are in the right location for the local community.

Nuclear Power Stations

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what provision has been made for the evacuation of Mersea Island in the event of an emergency at Bradwell Power Station; and what estimate has been made about how long this would take.

Brian Wilson: As with all UK civil nuclear sites, well developed and regularly tested arrangements for responding to an emergency at Bradwell Power Station are in place as part of the licensing requirements imposed by HSE's nuclear installations inspectorate. Detailed emergency plans are prepared for an area within the 2.4 km detailed emergency planning zone for Bradwell. Mersea Island is outside the detailed emergency planning zone for Bradwell; the boundary of this zone is defined in relation to the most significant release of radiation from an accident which can be seen through reasonably foreseeable scenarios and is derived from the safety case established for the site. Beyond this, plans must be capable of being extended to deal with larger, less likely events. This principle of extendibility is an important part of civil nuclear emergency response arrangements. Use is made of the general plans prepared by the police, local authority and other agencies for a wide range of events. These do not provide for the detailed estimation of evacuation times which would need to take into account the circumstances at the time: ie time of day, prevailing weather conditions and the state of the tide.
	Bradwell Power Station ceased generating electricity on 31 March 2002 and will be decommissioned over the next few years. This process will reduce the radiological hazard.

Nuclear Power Stations

Debra Shipley: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the Government's policy is on the closure of nuclear power stations; and if they will pay for the disposal of nuclear waste from nuclear power stations.

Brian Wilson: The operation of a nuclear power station is a matter for the relevant operator, subject to meeting the necessary regulatory requirements. The Government have already announced that, through the proposed Liabilities Management Authority, it will take on direct financial responsibility for the decommissioning and clean-up of BNFL's Magnox stations. Financial responsibility for the decommissioning of private sector nuclear power stations and the management of spent fuel and all associated wastes and materials is a matter for the operator concerned.

Nuclear Power Stations

Debra Shipley: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether, when the liabilities of a nuclear power station exceed its assets, the Government will allow it to continue in business.

Brian Wilson: If the liabilities of any company exceed its assets, it is a matter for the directors of that company to decide whether the company should continue trading. In addition, in the case of a nuclear power company operating on sites licensed under the Nuclear Installations Act 1965, the Health and Safety Executive's nuclear installations inspectorate would continue to monitor closely the company's activities to ensure it continued to maintain its safety performance.

Nuclear Power Stations

Debra Shipley: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the Government's policy regarding building new nuclear power stations.

Brian Wilson: In common with all generation options, the initiative for bringing forward proposals to construct new plant lies with the market and the generating companies. British Energy and BNFL have said they have no current plans for such proposals.

Office for Civil Nuclear Security

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry at which sites her Office for Civil Nuclear Security and HM Nuclear Installations Inspectorate have jointly conducted audits of plant security; and on what dates, involving how many personnel the audits were conducted.

Brian Wilson: The Office for Civil Nuclear Security (OCNS), the independent security regulator and HSE's Nuclear Installations Inspectorate (NII), the safety regulator have a close working relationship and undertook an immediate joint review of security and safety issues of all UK civil nuclear sites in the light of the terrorist attacks in the United States last September. In the light of that review, sites were visited either jointly or by the relevant Regulator depending on the functions of the site concerned, its complexity, and other relevant factors. Since 11 September inspectors from both regulatory bodies have undertaken joint reviews at Capenhurst, Dounreay, Sellafield and Springfields.

Liabilities Management

Debra Shipley: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the work of the Liabilities Management Authority.

Brian Wilson: The Government's plans for the LMA will be set out in a White Paper to be published shortly.

BNFL

Debra Shipley: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the transfer of BNFL assets to LMA.

Brian Wilson: The Government's plans for the transfer of BNFL's assets to LMA will be set out in a White Paper to be published shortly.

Draft Takeovers Directive

Richard Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what proposals the Government have for the European Union Takeovers Directive; if she will make a statement on the current state of the draft Takeovers Directive; and if she will make a statement.

Melanie Johnson: The Government are presently awaiting a new proposal from the European Commission.

Cefn Croes Wind Farm

Simon Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will place in the Library (a) reports and (b) advice she received relating to the Cefn Croes wind farm application in Ceredigion.

Brian Wilson: The advice of the National Assembly for Wales has already been placed in the Libraries of the House. Under Exemption 2—internal discussion and advice—of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information, I do not intend to publish the advice from the DTI officials to Ministers.

Renewable Energy Investment

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what proportion of the promised £260 million in renewable energy investment has been made; to which projects it has been allocated; and how much electricity is expected to be produced by the projects by 2010.

Brian Wilson: £260 million has been allocated to the following projects:
	£55.5 million per annum for research and development
	£74 million for Offshore Wind Capital Grants
	£81.5 million for Bioenergy Capital Grants
	£20 million for Photovoltaics
	£10 million for Community and Household Capital Grants
	£2.5 million for Planning Facilitation work
	£10 million for Blue Skies Research
	£5 million for Wave and Tidal development
	£4 million for Net Metering, Storage and Control Technologies
	£6 million for Photovoltaic Field Trials.
	Of these projects, all are up and running except the Community and Household Capital Grants Scheme, which is in the design stage. It is expected that we will spend this year's £19 million on research and development and approximately £10 million on capital grants.
	Most of the programmes are intended to support research, development and pre-commercial demonstration of renewable technologies. Only the Offshore Wind and Bioenergy Capital Grants programmes are expected to contribute to the 2010 target. These programmes will result in approximately 1,300 megawatts of capacity or 1.5 per cent. of electricity supply.

Copyright

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will review the laws of copyright, with special reference to (a) the position in North America, (b) the implications of the new EU directive and (c) the impact of the internet; and if she will make a statement.

Melanie Johnson: holding answer 1 July 2002
	UK copyright law (the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988) has proved remarkably "future-proof" as regards the challenges of the internet and electronic commerce but some modifications will be needed to implement EU Directive 2001/29/EC on copyright and related rights in the information society. The directive is required to be transposed into national laws by 22 December 2002. There will be consultation as part of the process with interested parties.

Domestic Subsidies

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, pursuant to her answer of 26 February 2002, Official Report, column 1128W, on domestic subsidies, by what date after the final date for the conclusions of negotiations her Department estimates export and trade distorting domestic subsidies will be phased out.

Elliot Morley: It is as yet too early in the WTO negotiations to forecast the likely scale and timing of reductions in these subsidies. The Government will continue to press for full and prompt implementation of the commitments made at Doha.

United Kingdom Petrol Stations

Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many United Kingdom petrol stations are exempt from vapour recovery regulations by way of annual turnover falling below the exemption limit.

Michael Meacher: I have been asked to reply.
	In accordance with Directive 94/63/EC Stage I, petrol vapour recovery has been rolled out in the UK over the past seven years. The final stage in the implementation of the Directive is 31 December 2004. The controls will then apply to all petrol stations in the UK with an annual throughput greater than 100m 3 . In 1998 it was estimated that this derogation would exempt approximately 136 sites in the UK. However, the total number of petrol stations in the UK since 1998 has decreased, from 13,758 to 13,043 in 2000. As petrol station closures often have a disproportionate impact on the smaller sites, it is likely that the number of petrol stations covered by the derogation has decreased since the data were gathered.
	The directive also contains an option for member states to exempt larger sites, those with an annual throughput of less than 500m 3 , if located in an area where vapour emissions are unlikely to contribute significantly to environmental or health problems. My Department and the devolved Administrations are currently looking at applying the derogation in the UK.

TRANSPORT

Railtrack

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  when previous network management statements were published by Railtrack;
	(2)  what (a) statutory responsibility and (b) other responsibility Railtrack has to produce a network management statement.

Alistair Darling: Under condition 7 of its network licence as amended in September 1997, Railtrack is required to prepare and publish on or before 31 March in each year— or such other date as the Rail Regulator may specify—a statement detailing its plans for the maintenance, renewal and development of the network in Great Britain.

Entertainment Costs

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the cost was of the Department's 2001 staff Christmas Party; and how many people attended.

David Jamieson: The former Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions held no departmental Christmas party.

Rail Franchises

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what has been spent by (a) his Department and (b) the Strategic Rail Authority in relation to (i) the re-letting of Chiltern railways franchise, (ii) the GNER Franchise Extension, (iii) the Island Line extension, (iv) the Midland Mainline Extension, (v) other franchise re-negotiations and (vi) all franchise renegotiations and extensions; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: The total so far spent by the Strategic Rail Authority on franchise renegotiations and extensions is approximately £10 million. A breakdown of that figure is not readily available.

EU Directives

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the EU directives relating to his Department which have been (a) amended and (b) repealed in 2002.

David Jamieson: The following EU Directives have been amended:
	"96/49/EC"—Directive on the approximation of the laws of member states with regard to the transport of dangerous goods by rail [Amended by Directive 2001/6/EC]
	"94/55/EC"—Directive on the approximation of the laws of member states with regard to the transport of dangerous goods by road [Amended by Directive 2001/7/EC]
	"96/96/EC"—Directive on the approximation of the laws of member states relating to roadworthiness tests for motor vehicles and their trailers. [Amended by Directive 2001/9/EC]
	"96/98/EC"—Directive on Marine Equipment [Amended by Directive 2001/53/EC]
	"97/68/EC"—Directive on the approximation of measures against the emission of gaseous and particulate pollutants from internal combustion engines to be installed in non-road mobile machinery. [Amended by Directive 2001/63/EC].
	No EU Directives have been repealed.

EU Directives

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the EU directives and regulations that have been implemented through his Department in 2002; and what was the cost of each to public funds.

David Jamieson: The following Directives have been transposed, in full or in part, this year:
	96/48—Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the interoperability of the trans-European rail system.
	2000/30—Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on technical roadside inspection of the roadworthiness of commercial vehicles circulating in the Community.
	2000/39—Commission Directive 2000/39/EC of 8 June 2000 establishing a first list of indicative occupational exposure limit values in the implementation of Council Directive 98/24/EC on the protection of the health and safety of workers from the risks related to chemical agents at work.
	2001/6—Directive 2001/6/EC of 29 January 2001, adapting for the third time to technical progress Council Directive 96/49/EC on the approximation of the laws of the member states with regard to transportation of dangerous goods by rail.
	2001/7—Commission Directive 2001/7/EC of 29 January 2001 adapting for the third time to technical progress Council Directive 94/55/EC on the approximation of the laws of the member states with regard to transportation of dangerous goods by road.
	2001/09—Commission Directive 2001/9/EC adapting to technical progress Commission Directive 96/96/EC on the approximation of the laws of member states relating to roadworthiness tests for motor vehicles and their trailers.
	2001/53—Commission Directive 2001/531/EC amending Directive 96/98/EC on marine equipment.
	2001/63—Commission Directive 2001/63/EC adapting to technical progress Directive 97/68/EC of the Parliament and of the Council on the approximation of measures against the emission of gaseous and particulate pollutants from internal combustion engines to be installed in non-road mobile machinery.
	We have no central record of domestic legislation made in support of EU Regulations. Such information could be assembled only at disproportionate cost. Similarly, information about the costs of implementation is not readily available.

EU Directives

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many people are employed in his Department (a) full-time and (b) part-time to (i) monitor and (ii) liaise on European Directives; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: A number of areas of the Department are engaged at different times in monitoring and liaison of EU Directives. The number of staff involved therefore varies considerably, as does the amount of time individuals spend on EU business. One division of the Department, at present comprising 22 posts, is responsible for overall advice on European and international business.

Statutory Instruments

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many statutory instruments have been (a) introduced, (b) removed and (c) amended by his Department since 1 January; and what the (i) cost and (ii) saving has been in each case.

David Jamieson: In the period from 1 January 2002 to 31 May 2002, my Department's predecessor (the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions) was responsible for making 80 general statutory instruments. A list identifying these has been placed in the Libraries of the House. Endorsed on each instrument is an Explanatory Note, which identifies any legislation revoked or amended by the instrument. The remainder of the information requested is not held centrally in a form which would enable it to be provided by my Department without incurring disproportionate costs.

Cycle Lanes

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the average cost is of the provision is of a mile of a cycle lane.

David Jamieson: Average costs are not available, but since cycle lanes use the existing carriageway of a road and are identified by markings and signs, costs are not high. The limitation in providing more cycle lanes on the carriageway will often be lack of sufficient road space to accommodate them.

Rail Accident Investigation

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what work has been conducted under HSE supervision for (a) Railtrack, (b) British Transport Police and (c) other rail industry companies and bodies in relation to accident investigation into the (i) Hatfield rail crash, (ii) Ladbroke Grove rail crash and (iii) Potter's Bar rail crash; who the contractor was in each case; what the nature of the work was; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: In addition to work undertaken by the Health and Safety Executive's (HSE) internal laboratory, HSE commissioned the following work from external contractors:
	
		
			 Contractor Research 
		
		
			 (i) Hatfield  
			 Trimac Ltd. Specialist Photographic Support 
			 AEA Technology Rail Assistance with investigation including on-site derailment investigation, track profile measurements and examination of vehicles. 
			 AEA Consultancy Advice on non-destructive testing. 
			 Serco Rail-test Practical non-destructive testing of rails. 
			 Sheffield Testing Labs Chemical analysis of steel samples. Machine and tensile test of rails. 
			   
			 (ii) Ladbroke Grove  
			 Grant Fire Consultants Review of existing fire standards and a review of the literature in respect of the behaviour of fires on porous ground. 
			 Interek Testing Testing of gas/oil samples. 
			 Forensic Science Services Paint analysis. 
			 Astra Zeneca Auto ignition temperature test of samples of gas/oil. 
			 University of Sheffield ICP analysis. 
			 Garvic Development Design advice related to fuel tank impact test. 
			 IC Consultants Technical support in respect of the failure of fuel tanks and of the collision dynamics. 
			   
			 (iii) Potters Bar  
			 AEA Technology Rail Assistance with investigations. 
		
	
	This information relates to the principal contractors only. A complete list of all the contractors involved could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Live Firing Exercises (Aircraft Activities)

Robert Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport at what (a) height, (b) latitude and (c) longitude the KLM Fokker 70 aircraft was flying on 19 June when the MoD ordered a ceasefire during a live firing exercise on Salisbury Plain below it; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: I am advised by National Air Traffic Services (NATS) that the KLM Fokker 70 aircraft, en route from Amsterdam to Bristol on 19 June, was at a height of 17,000 feet, and was at latitude 51o 17' north and longitude 001o 51' west when the incident occurred. NATS has assured us that at no time was safety compromised or the aircraft in danger. Nevertheless, NATS are carrying out a full investigation into the incident as are the Civil Aviation Authority, the Government's safety regulator, in order to establish what happened and what lessons may be learned for the future.

Live Firing Exercises (Aircraft Activities)

Robert Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport at what time on 19 June National Air Traffic Services at Swanwick was first informed that a KLM Fokker 70 aircraft flying from Amsterdam to Bristol was passing over a live Army artillery exercise on Salisbury Plain; and what action they took.

David Jamieson: The incident occurred at 10:30 hrs BST on 19 June. The Fokker 70 was detected by the MOD's Boscombe radar. On detection, Boscombe immediately invoked the Clear Range Procedure to ensure that activity in the Danger Area ceased before the aircraft penetrated the airspace, and informed NATS. As the aircraft was approaching its Bristol destination, and firing in the Danger Areas had been suspended, NATS permitted the aircraft to complete its journey. NATS subsequently initiated a full investigation into the incident which is also being examined by the CAA.

Live Firing Exercises (Aircraft Activities)

Robert Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what procedures are in place to ensure that National Air Traffic Services are informed of (a) military flying exercises and (b) artillery firing exercises in the vicinity of Salisbury Plain.

David Jamieson: Civil/military co-ordination is well established in the UK: major military flying and artillery firing exercises at Army ranges such as those on the Salisbury Plain are pre-planned with involvement from National Air Traffic Services. Such exercises are notified to airspace users by means of Airspace Co-ordination Notices issued by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). The CAA also convey information about the activation of Danger Areas through the issue of British Islands Daily Nav Warnings. The two particular Danger Areas penetrated by the KLM Fokker 70 are active 24 hours a day and hence no notice of activation would be required. All Danger Areas are promulgated in the UK Aeronautical Information Publication and are shown on the aeronautical charts.

Departmental Waste

Sue Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proportion of waste produced in his Department was (a) recycled, (b) composted and (c) re-used, broken down into (i) paper, (ii) plastics, (iii) aluminium cans and (iv) other in each year since 1997; what plans there are to increase these proportions; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: My Department was formed on 29 May. Prior to 1999–2000, waste data were only available for DTLR headquarters and some other main sites. More comprehensive data have been available since.
	
		
			  Percentage recycled 
		
		
			 1997–98 — 
			 1998–99 — 
			 1999–2000 44 
			 2000–01 42 
			 2001–02 51 
		
	
	Our policy aim is to achieve 70 per cent. rate of recovery or recycling by 2003–04.
	Detailed information on waste streams is not available for the Department as a whole.

Recycling

Sue Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proportion of (a) paper and (b) other goods purchased by his Department was recycled paper in each year since 1997; what the annual total cost of these purchases was; what plans there are to increase these proportions; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: My Department was formed on 29 May. Our policy is to buy recycled paper for all work not requiring specialist papers. The proportion of paper bought by DTLR that met the policy in respect of recycled content was:
	
		
			  Percentage recycled 
		
		
			 1997–98 44 
			 1998–99 50 
			 1999–2000 52 
			 2000–01 85 
			 2001–02 94 
		
	
	Information on other recycled goods and cost is not available.

Press Releases

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport on what occasions press releases have been released on behalf of the Department by the Government offices for the regions since 7 June 2001; and if he will place copies of these in the Library.

David Jamieson: The Government offices for the regions do not issue press releases on behalf of the Department for Transport, or previously for the former Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions.

European Transport White Paper

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with (a) European Commissioners and (b) the European Parliament on the European transport White Paper; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: The European Commission published its European transport policy White Paper in September 2001. The White Paper itself has no legislative or executive force at this stage, but it indicates areas where the Commission intends to initiate action over the next few years.
	There have been discussions on this White Paper at the Transport Council on several occasions, but neither I nor other departmental Ministers have had specific discussions with the European Commission or the European Parliament.

Multi-modal Studies

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how he will expedite the implementation of the findings of the 21 multi-modal studies set out in the 10-year transport plan to ensure that the infrastructure improvements identified therein are operational by 2010.

David Jamieson: The multi-modal studies are developing strategies which go well beyond 2010. We will consider the recommendations of each study and agree an integrated programme of measures to be taken forward by the Highways Agency, Strategic Rail Authorities and local authorities.

Track Bed Maintenance

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent changes have been made to the (a) practice and (b) regularity of track bed maintenance on the railways; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: This is an operational matter for Railtrack. However, I understand from Railtrack that there have been no recent changes.

Variable Speed Limits

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what (a) guidance has been given by his Department to (i) the Highways Agency and (ii) local authorities and (b) legislation is in place covering variable speed limits; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: Section 84 of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 as amended by section 45 of the Road Traffic Act 1991 provides for local authorities to create variable speed limits.
	Similarly, sections 17(2) and (3) of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 provides for the Highways Agency to create variable speed limits on special roads.
	Guidance on variable speed limits is contained in Circular Roads 2–92.

EU Public Service Requirements Regulation

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with the European Commission on the EU Public Service Requirements Regulation; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: In July 2000 the European Commission published a proposal for a regulation concerning public service requirements and the award of public service contracts in passenger transport by rail, road and inland waterway. An amended proposal was published in February 2002. This proposal is intended to stimulate more efficient and attractive public transport through the use of regulated competition and other measures and to promote legal certainty for authorities and operators.
	There have been discussions at, and progress reports to, the Transport Council on several occasions, but neither I nor other departmental Ministers have had specific discussions with the European Commission regarding this proposal.

Road Deterioration

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proposals he will put in place to ensure that local authorities (a) halt the deterioration of the local road network by 2004 and (b) eliminate the backlog by 2010.

David Jamieson: The Government are providing over £30 billion for local road maintenance over the period of the 10-year Transport Plan, an extra £9 billion (23 per cent. in real terms) above the funding levels in the previous 10 years.
	Local authority road condition is monitored annually by Best Value Performance Indicators. DfT is also working with local authorities to develop more efficient management systems for carriageways, bridges and street lighting.

Road Pricing

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he intends to implement road pricing in south-east England following the recent publication of the London Orbital multi-modal study.

David Jamieson: There are no plans to do so.

Rural Transport

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what support for (a) rural transport partnerships and (b) community based projects in rural areas he has given in the last two years; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what support he has given to flexible transport in rural communities; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: Specific funding for flexible transport services in rural areas, such as demand responsive buses, dial-a-ride schemes and shared taxis, is available through my Department's Rural Bus Challenge and the Countryside Agency's Rural Transport Partnership and Parish Transport Fund programmes. The Rural White Paper published in November 2000 announced that £60 million, £32 million, and £15 million would be made available for these three programmes respectively over the period 2001–02 to 2003–04. Local authorities can also use their revenue support grant to fund flexible transport services.
	Total spending on rural transport partnerships and other community-based transport projects in rural areas through the Rural Bus Challenge and Rural Transport Partnership programme in the last two financial years are as follows.
	
		£ million 
		
			Rural bus challenge Rural transport partnership 
		
		
			 2000–01 6.17 4.80 
			 2001–02 11.03 6.96 
		
	
	The 2000–01 rural transport partnership figure includes funding for the Countryside Agency's rural transport development fund, which merged with its rural transport partnership programme in April 2001.

London Underground

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  for what reason a 95 per cent. public sector guarantee was given to the London Underground PPP; who will finance this guarantee, if invoked; and whether the guarantee constitutes a form of state aid to the PPP;
	(2)  what risk transfer to the public sector has occurred over the period of negotiations on the London Underground PPP; and for what proportion of responsibility for debt (a) the public sector and (b) the contractors are liable.

David Jamieson: Negotiation of the contracts is a matter for London Underground. However, in general, it is common for the terms of a contract to change as a result of negotiation. Office of Government Commerce guidance states that the principle governing risk transfer is not to transfer all possible risks, but rather to allocate risk to whomever from the public or private sector is able to manage it at least cost. London Transport has sought to act in line with this guidance in the course of its negotiations with bidders for the London Underground PPPs.
	I understand the contracts provide that, in certain circumstances where a private sector infrastructure company persistently breaches the contract and no alternative contractor can be found, London Underground can take control of the infrastructure company at a price that allows for 95 per cent. of approved third-party bank and bond debt to be repaid. None of the finance provided by the shareholders would be repaid. London Transport considers these contract provisions to be in line with its aim of optimising value for money overall, balancing the cost of raising finance against the need to provide the private sector with a strong incentive to meet contractual obligations to improve performance. London Underground's obligations under the PPP contracts will initially be backed by a guarantee from London Regional Transport. It is the Government's intention to transfer London Underground to Transport for London in line with the provisions of the GLA Act 1999, and London Regional Transport's guarantee will be transferred to Transport for London at the same time.
	The Secretary of State also intends to issue a letter of comfort in relation to the London Underground PPPs. This is intended to clarify his role in relation to the Greater London Authority and Transport for London, including his intentions towards providing funding in respect of London Underground. This letter of comfort was reported to Parliament using the Minute procedure on 20 March 2002.
	Whether these arrangements constitute state aid is a matter for the European Commission in the context of the Government's notification to the Commission on 12 April.

London Underground

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the public subsidy which will be necessary each year to fund the improvements made to the London Underground under the PPP;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the shortfall over the first seven-and-a-half years of the London Underground PPP contract; and how this funding gap is to be met.

David Jamieson: The Government will ensure that London Underground has sustained and secured funding to meet its contractual obligations to the infrastructure companies for delivering the massive increase in investment expected under the tube modernisation plans. I refer the hon. Member to the proposed letter of comfort that was reported to Parliament using the Minute procedure on 20 March 2002.

National Air Traffic Control Services

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimates he has made of the losses to British airlines and businesses caused by failures of the computer system at the new National Air Traffic Control Services.

David Jamieson: No such estimate has been made of the losses caused to airlines and other businesses.
	There have been three failures of computer systems at NATS' Air Traffic Control Centres this year. Two have occurred to the Flight Data Processing System at West Drayton and one was attributable to a faulty work station at the new centre at Swanwick.
	A number of immediate actions have been taken, including a successful upgrade to the software in the system at West Drayton. NATS are confident that the problems that have caused these three system failures have been addressed.

Electoral Registration

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what plans he has to amend electoral registration forms issued by electoral registration officers to ensure that voters are informed that the details they provide may be recorded on police computers and other public sector databases.

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will make a statement about the impact of wider statutory disclosures of name and address details from the electoral roll on the willingness of individuals from (a) ethnic, (b) religious and (c) other minority groupings to register for the vote.

Yvette Cooper: I have been asked to reply.
	The Government published on 13 May a policy paper and draft regulations on access to, and sale and supply of, electoral registers which proposes to restrict, rather than widen, such access, sale and supply. The draft regulations include a new specimen registration form and guidance notes which clearly state who may receive copies of the electoral registers and the purposes for which the information obtained will be used. The Regulations were laid on 27 June 2002. In addition, I understand The Electoral Commission intends to produce a leaflet explaining the effect of the regulations in more detail. It is important that all individuals are able to exercise their right to vote and can be reassured that appropriate procedures are in place to handle the information provided for registration.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Rio-Earth Summit (Implementation)

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps have been taken by the Government since the Rio Earth Summit in 1992 to (a) set goals on environmental protection and (b) improve eco-efficiency and resource productivity relating to sanitation issues; and what these (i) goals and (ii) improvements have been.

Michael Meacher: The Government has set goals and secured improvements in the protection of the environment and the sustainable use of natural resources for both water supply and waste water disposal, both through international and European agreement and domestic regulatory requirements since 1992.
	The measures under which this has been done include:
	(i) the Drinking Water Directive, which sets minimum standards for the wholesomeness of drinking water supplies; this has been transposed into national legislation by the Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations 2000 which include some additional national standards;
	(ii) The Environment Agency has published "Water Resources for the Future", which plans reductions in existing abstractions in England and wales of water totalling some 700Ml/day to reduce unsustainable abstraction by 2010;
	(iii) the Urban Waste Water Treatment (England and Wales) Regulations 1994 set standards and deadlines for the treatment of sewage; I announced in March 1999 a further goal that all significant sewage discharges in England and Wales should receive at least secondary treatment by 2005; and
	(iv) the Bathing Water Directive, under which a goal has been set for English beaches to achieve at least 97 per cent. compliance with the Directive's main mandatory standards by 2005.
	Among the improvements achieved are:
	(i) the level of compliance with standards in public drinking water supplies rose from 98.65 per cent. in 1992 to 99.83 per cent. in 2000;
	(ii) in England, between 1990 and 2000, there has been a 10 per cent. increase in river lengths classified as good or fair chemical quality and an 8 per cent. increase in rivers of good or fair biological quality;
	(iii) secondary treatment is now provided at 99 per cent. of sewage treatment works in England which serve population greater than 15,000; and
	(iv) compliance with the Bathing Water Directive's main mandatory standards for beaches increased from 79 per cent. in 1992 to 98 per cent. in 2001.
	Summary forward programmes of the measures required of water and sewerage companies to meet environmental and resource use goals in their operations and investment are set out once every five years in Ministers' guidance on the programmes of quality improvements for Ofwat's periodic review of water price limits. The guidance for the period 2000–05 was published in "Raising the Quality" in 1998.

Flood Defences

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the answer of 25 March, Official Report, column 728W, on flood defences, if she will make a statement on Article 33 of Council Regulation (EC) No 1257/99 of 17 May 1999 and its applicability to flood management in the UK.

Elliot Morley: The Rural Enterprise Scheme, which forms part of the England Rural Development Programme, implements rural development measures under Article 33 of Council Regulation 1257–99. That Article includes, among its 13 measures, scope for restoring agricultural production potential damaged by natural disasters (which could include some, not all, flood incidents) and introducing appropriate prevention measures.
	Given the small scale of the EU Rural Development funds allocated to the UK, and the fact that the UK taxpayer would have to fund a significant proportion of the costs, careful targeting of the ERDP was necessary. The measures adopted under the Rural Enterprise Scheme reflect the range of regional priorities and targets identified following close consultation with statutory partners and stakeholders. They are wide-ranging in nature but also reflect the scheme's primary aim of helping farmers to adapt to changing markets and develop new business opportunities. The measure referred to above was not identified as a priority for support and therefore is not included in the scheme. The hon. Member will know from answers to previous questions, including that given to him on 15 November 2001, Official Report, columns 890–91W, the substantial investment in flood and costal defence made by the Government.

Correspondence

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many items of incoming mail (a) from hon. Members and (b) in total in each month since June 2001 have been (i) received, (ii) fully responded to, (iii) are held pending for response and (iv) are untraceable.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 21 May 2002
	The total number of letters received from hon. Members since June 2001 (as at 30 June 2002) stood at 11,393. We have responded in full to 9,609 letters and 1,784 letters are awaiting a response.
	The breakdown by month of letters from hon. Members awaiting a response is:
	
		
			 Month Received Fully responded to Pending a response 
		
		
			 November 2001 846 770 76 
			 December 2001 527 464 63 
			 January 2002 1053 959 94 
			 February 2002 1105 1011 94 
			 March 2002 1377 1210 167 
			 April 2002 1115 861 254 
			 May 2002 1022 629 393 
			 June 2002 737 94 643 
		
	
	Our database records details of all letters received from honourable Members. We are therefore unable to provide details of untraceable mail.
	Providing similar information for all items of mail received in the department would only be available at disproportionate cost.

Tuna Fishing

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps she is taking to ensure that fishing for tuna does not endanger the lives of other sea creatures.

Elliot Morley: During the United Kingdom's Presidency of the EU in 1998 we achieved the adoption of a ban on the use of drift nets in the tuna fishery. The ban came into effect on 1 January of this year. We look carefully at information relating to cetacean by catch in various fisheries. Research sponsored by DEFRA into the new designs of trawl nets to allow the escape of marine mammals may have benefits for the tuna trawl fishery in due course.

Departmental Grants

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which organisations which were in receipt of a grant from her in 1997–98 no longer are; what the annual saving is; which organisations which were not in receipt of a grant in 1997–98 now are; and what the annual cost is.

Elliot Morley: The aggregate figure for government grants to private organisations and individuals was £28.6 billion in 2000–01 (the last year for which full outturn data is available) compared with £24.8 billion in 1997–98. This includes Lottery grants, but excludes social security payments classified as grants in the national accounts.
	The Department has only been in existence since June 2001, so does not have such historical information itself. Constructing it retrospectively would involve disproportionate cost.

Departmental Expenditure Limit

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much and what proportion of the departmental expenditure limit for 2002–03 had been spent by 31 May; what the figures were for 2001–02; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 17 June 2002, Official Report, column 130W.

Staff Training

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much the Department has spent on staff training and development in each of the last five years.

Elliot Morley: Since the formation of this Department in June 2001 1.89 per cent. of annual running costs has been spent on staff training and development.

Ministerial Salaries

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the annual cost was of Ministerial salaries in her Department in (a) 1997–98 and (b) 2001–02.

Elliot Morley: The level of Ministerial salaries are recommended by the Senior Salaries Review Body. From May 1997, in this department there was 1 Cabinet Minister, at an annual salary of £43,991; 1 Minister of State, at an annual salary of £31,125; and 2 Parliamentary Under-Secretaries of State, at an annual salary of £23,623 (Commons) and £43,632 (Lords). From June 2001, there was 1 Cabinet Minister, at an annual salary of £68,157; 2 Ministers of State, each at an annual salary of £35,356; and 2 Parliamentary Under-Secretaries of State at an annual salary of £26,835 (Commons) and £60,961 (Lords).

Committee Mandates

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the mandate of the Advisory Committee on Livestock Products is; how many times it has met over the last 12 months; what the UK representation on it is; what the annual cost of its work is to public funds; if she will list the items currently under its consideration; if she will take steps to increase its accountability and transparency to Parliament; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: The mandate of the Advisory Committee on Livestock Products is set out in Commission Decision 98/235/EC. The UK is not formally represented on the Committee; members are directly appointed by the Commission, drawn from across the EU, on the basis of their socioeconomic interests.
	The Commission, together with member states, is currently conducting a review to bring existing legislation on the conduct of comitology committees into line with Council Decision 1999/468/EC, to 'simplify the requirements for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the Commission'. As an obligation to this Decision, the Commission undertook to publish an annual report on the working of committees. The first report was deposited in the Libraries of both Houses on 26 February (Com (2001) 783 Final). As part of the review process, the UK Government has encouraged the Commission to produce and maintain an electronic database of every comitology committee, its agendas and recent actions, to be available through its website.

Free Range Eggs

David Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what action her Department is taking to promote the production of free range eggs in the United Kingdom.

Elliot Morley: The Department recognises the importance of free range egg systems both in terms of consumer demand and as part of a general policy on the welfare of laying hens. However, the department is not currently involved in any direct promotion of free range eggs.

Noise Forum

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what action she intends to take on the conclusions contained in publications issued by the Government and on behalf of the Government which were distributed at the United Kingdom Noise Forum's inaugural conference held on 20 May; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: The 'Noise Incidence Study' (NIS) and 'Noise Attitudes Survey' (NAS), are the latest in a time-series of data on the levels of noise, and people's perception of noise.
	The key finding from NIS is that the average noise levels measured during the daytime and evening have decreased to some extent.
	The environmental (road, rail and air traffic) noise issues identified within NIS and NAS, will be addressed during the development of the National Ambient Noise Strategy currently being developed. Moreover, the highlighted problem of neighbour noise will be jointly targeted with the planned amendments to the Noise Act 1996, which will make it easier for councils to use additional powers to control domestic noise, and with the 'Neighbour Noise Communications Plan'. This will involve the characterisation of both noisemakers and noise sufferers so that a hard-hitting publicity campaign can communicate both how to deal with noise nuisance, and how to avoid creating it.
	Additionally, the 'Review of European Legislation and Practices (2002)', has identified a variety of enforcement and control measures that my officials will be exploring in more detail. These include:
	Integration of local authority efforts—the Amsterdam example given in the report appears to offer benefits
	Mediation—mediation in Norway is cited as a model service
	Education—further research is recommended into the effectiveness of education programmes, particularly in schools.

Frozen Peas

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will take steps to support the frozen peas industry and pea producers in East Anglia; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 17 June 2002
	The production and processing of peas are undertaken in response to market demand. I have no plans to provide specific support either to producers or to processors.

Recycling

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many applications the Environment Agency has received for further fixed plant recycling sites in the UK in 2002.

Michael Meacher: The Environment Agency has received applications from ten companies for licences for the recycling of refrigerators and freezers.
	Other plant for general recycling operate at sites across the range of the waste industry, including landfill sites, scrap yards, transfer stations, composting sites and other treatment sites. It is not possible to readily identify which applications have a component in respect of recycling plant.

Wild Fauna and Flora

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  when the EU Committee for the protection of species of wild fauna and flora by regulating trade is next due to meet; whether experts nominated by the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  when the EU scientific review group for the protection of species of wild fauna and flora by regulating trade is next due to meet; whether experts nominated by the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: The next meeting of the Committee on Trade in Wild Fauna and Flora is on 30 July 2002. The Scottish Executive is not represented on the Committee, or the related Scientific Review Group, as the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) is not a devolved matter. The July meeting will focus on agreeing a common position on proposals for the next Conference of CITES Parties, which takes place in Santiago, Chile in November. We are currently seeking views from our overseas territories and other interested parties on the merits of these proposals.
	The next Scientific Review Group meeting is on 5 September 2002. The UK is represented on the Committee by scientific advisers from the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (fauna) and the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew (flora). The Scientific Review Group was set up to examine scientific questions relating to the implementation of CITES within the EU. The meeting in September is likely to focus on preparations for the next CITES Conference.

EU Management Committee

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the EU Management Committees of the common organisations of agricultural markets for natural fibres is next due to meet; whether experts nominated by the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: The Management Committee for Natural Fibres assists the European Commission in the operation of the common organisation of the market in flax, hemp, cotton and silkworms. It has met seven times over the last 12 months. The date for the next meeting has not been fixed. UK representation depends on the agenda items under discussion. Officials from the Scottish Executive and other devolved administrations attend as necessary in accordance with their interests.

EU Management Committee

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the EU Committee for the adaptation to scientific and technical progress of the Directive on water intended for human consumption is next due to meet; how many times it has met over the last 12 months; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: I refer the hon. Member to the written answer given to the hon. Member for Buckingham (Mr. John Bercow) on 10 June 2002, Official Report, column 915W-16W.
	The Committee established under Article 12 of the Drinking Water Directive 1998 expects to meet again in November. During the past 12 months the Committee met in November 2001 and in April 2002.

EU Management Committee

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the EU Joint Meetings of Management and/or Regulatory Committee in the field of agriculture-agrimonetary questions is next due to meet; whether experts nominated by the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: There are no meetings scheduled for the Agrimonetary Management Committee.
	UK representation on the committee is led by DEFRA although members of the devolved administrations are entitled to attend. Members of the Scottish Executive have not attended past meetings.

EU Management Committee

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the EU Management Committee of the Common Organisations of Agricultural Markets for Live Plants and Floriculture Products is next due to meet; whether experts nominated by the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: I refer the hon. Member to written answer given to the hon. Member for Buckingham (Mr. Bercow) on 10 June 2002, Official Report, column 913W.
	There is no set schedule of meetings for the Management Committee for Live Plants and Floriculture Products. UK representation on this management committee depends on the agenda items under discussion. No representative of the Scottish Executive has attended.

EU Management Committee

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the EU Committee on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora (habitat) is next due to meet; what the UK representation is on it; whether experts nominated by the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: The Habitats Committee last met on 14 March 2002, and at that meeting it was decided the committee would next meet at a date to be arranged in November 2002. UK representation ordinarily consists of an official from my Department together with a scientific adviser from the Joint Nature Conservation Committee. However, wider representation on the committee depends on the agenda items under discussion. Officials from the devolved administrations attend as necessary in accordance with their interests. Officials from the Scottish Executive have attended all recent Habitats Committee meetings.

EU Management Committee

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the EU Management Committee of the Common Organisations of Agricultural Markets for Oils and Fats is next due to meet; whether experts nominated by the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: The EU Management Committee for Oils and Fats is next due to meet on 5 July 2002. UK representation on this management committee depends on the agenda items under discussion. Officials from the Scottish Executive and other devolved administrations attend as necessary in accordance with their interests. However, no representative of the Scottish Executive has attended the Management Committee for Oils and Fats.

EU Management Committee

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the EU Committee on Certificates of Specific Character for Agricultural Products and Foodstuffs is next due to meet; whether experts nominated by the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: The date of the next EU Regulatory Committee on Certificates of Specific Character for Agricultural Produce and Foodstuffs is unknown at this stage.
	UK representation varies according to the agenda for each meeting and may include members of the Scottish Executive and other devolved administrations where there are items of sufficient interest. If Scottish Executive colleagues do not attend, they work closely with DEFRA officials to ensure that Scottish interests are fully taken into account.

EU Management Committee

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the EU Committee for the Adaptation to Technical and Scientific Progress of the Directive on Conservation of Wild Birds is next due to meet; whether experts nominated by the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: The ORNIS Committee (the Committee for the Adaptation to Technical and Scientific Progress of the Directive on Conservation of Wild Birds) last met on 14 June 2002. No date has yet been fixed for the next meeting. The committee consists of representatives of the EU member states. UK representation depends on the items under discussion, but usually includes an official from my Department together with a scientific adviser from the Joint Nature Conservation Committee.
	Officials of my Department involve the devolved administrations as fully as possible in discussions about the formulation of the UK's policy position on all EU and international issues which touch on devolved matters. In this respect officials from the devolved administrations attend relevant meetings of the ORNIS Committee, as necessary, to support and advance the UK negotiating line that they will have played a part in developing. Officials from the Scottish Executive attended the last two meetings of the ORNIS Committee on 15 June 2001 and 14 June 2002.

EU Management Committee

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the EU Management Committee of the Common Organisations of Agricultural Markets for Seeds is next due to meet; whether experts nominated by the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: No date has been fixed for the next meeting of the EU Management Committee for Seeds. The committee consists of representatives of the member states. UK representation depends upon the agenda for each meeting and can include members of the Scottish Executive and other devolved administrations where they consider that there are items of sufficient interest. The Scottish Executive has chosen not to attend this committee in recent years.

EU Management Committee

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the EU Management Committee of the common organisations of agricultural markets for products processed from fruit and vegetables is next due to meet; whether experts nominated by the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: I refer the hon. Member to the written answer given to the hon. Member for Buckingham (Mr. Bercow), on 10 June, Official Report, column 911–12W.
	The next meeting of the Processed Fruit and Vegetables Management Committee is scheduled for 16 July 2002. UK representation on this Committee depends on the agenda items under discussion. No representative of the Scottish Executive has attended.

EU Management Committee

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the EU Management Committee of the common organisations of agricultural markets for pigmeat is next due to meet; whether experts nominated by the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: The EU Management Committee of the common organisation of agricultural markets for pigmeat is next due to meet on the 9 July 2002.
	UK representation on the EU's Pigmeat Management Committee depends on the agenda items under discussion. Officials from the Scottish Executive and other devolved administrations attend as necessary in accordance with their interests.

EU Management Committee

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the EU Management Committee of the common organisations of agricultural markets for hops is next due to meet; whether experts nominated by the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: I refer the hon. Member to the written answer given to the hon. Member for Buckingham on 10 June 2002, Official Report, column 916W.
	There is no set schedule of meetings for the Management Committee for Hops. UK representation on this Management Committee depends on the agenda items under discussion. No representative of the Scottish Executive has attended.

Fishing

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her policy is on the devolution of greater control of fisheries management within the 12 mile limits of the UK to the UK Government, the Scottish Parliament and the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Elliot Morley: The United Kingdom Government has devolved fisheries management within the whole of the Scottish Fisheries Zone to the Scottish Executive. The National Assembly of Wales has assumed responsibility for the territorial sea off Wales and the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development is responsible for management of the territorial sea off Northern Ireland. In England the territorial sea remains the responsibility of Westminster. The 0–6 mile band off England and Wales continues to be managed by local authority Sea Fisheries Committees.

Fishing

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what her policy is on the Commission's proposal that there should be a 40 per cent. cut in the EU fishing fleet;
	(2)  if she will release the funds available from the EU for compensating UK fishermen when they are forced to reduce their effort through tie-ups and a reduction in days at sea.

Elliot Morley: We recognise that EU fleets are too large and that what is needed is a permanent reduction in tonnage. We therefore believe that where further cuts are needed, the priority must be to decommission vessels rather than to tie them up temporarily. If we return to present levels of fishing effort once stocks have recovered, we will simply recreate current problems of overfishing.
	We have not yet however had the opportunity to question the Commission about the detail of their calculations. Nonetheless, they have made clear that they do not seek to impose cuts in fleet capacity on Member States. Their figures which detail fleet cuts by Member States are to be taken as purely illustrative. It will be for Member States to decide what measures to introduce in response to the decisions taken by the Council on reducing fishing effort. The scale of decommissioning will also depend on the decisions taken by fishermen in the light of the impact of these measures. Fisheries Departments in the UK have however already been running decommissioning schemes this year and we would want these taken account of in any necessary reductions which are ultimately agreed.

Fishing

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what action she is taking to prevent the over-exploitation of fisheries in international waters and in the waters of third countries outside the EU where EU vessels are fishing.

Elliot Morley: We shall press for the EU to adopt a more sustainable and responsible approach to international fisheries as part of the reform of the common fisheries policy. In particular we shall be seeking improvements to the way the EU negotiates fishing agreements with third countries, in order to ensure the sustainable management of stocks.

Fishing

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what action she intends to take to prevent the killing of dolphins and porpoises as a by-catch in UK waters.

Elliot Morley: Dolphin and porpoise by-catch around the UK occurs in waters where vessels from other member states fish extensively, so action is required at EU level to resolve the problem. This is why I have been pressing the Commission to take action on this issue, particularly now that observations we have commissioned have demonstrated a dolphin by-catch problem in the pair trawl fishery for bass off south-west England. I was pleased to see recently that the Commission proposals for the reform of the CFP refer to the introduction by the end of 2002 of measures to reduce cetacean by-catch. We shall be looking for positive action on this in the course of the reform negotiations: we also intend to continue funding trials of adaptations to fishing gear that could reduce dolphin and porpoise by-catch.

Fishing

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make it her policy that no public aid will be used for building new vessels and modernising existing ones other than in the case of safety improvements and quality production.

Elliot Morley: It is already Government policy that grants should not be paid for building new vessels or for modernisation that increases fishing effort. In the UK vessel grants are only paid for the adoption of sustainable catching methods and improvements to the quality of fish on board and working conditions.

EU Fisheries Scientific Research Centre

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether she expects the EU Fisheries Scientific Research Centre to be located within the UK.

Elliot Morley: The UK welcomes the importance placed on improving the quality of scientific advice for fisheries management in the Commission's recent communication on the reform of the common fisheries policy. In particular, we look forward to seeing the detailed action plan due to be published before the end of 2002. At this stage the proposal to develop a European Centre for Fisheries Assessment and Management is a long-term aim, one of many ideas to be explored during the course of the review. We feel confident, however, that the UK's fisheries scientists will continue to play a leading role in improving the quality of scientific advice available to fisheries managers.

EU Standing Forestry Committee

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the EU Standing Forestry Committee is next due to meet; whether experts nominated by the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: The EU Standing Forestry Committee meets as and when business arises; the date of its next meeting has not been fixed as yet. The UK is represented on the committee by an official from the Forestry Commission, which reports to the forestry Ministers in England, Scotland and Wales.

EU Standing Committee on Agricultural Research

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the EU Standing Committee on Agricultural Research is next due to meet; whether experts nominated by the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: The European Commission has not yet set a date for the next meeting of SCAR. Experts from the Scottish Executive have not attended recent meetings of SCAR (which have been relatively infrequent), though officials in DEFRA liaise with their Scottish counterparts. There is no bar to their attending as part of the UK delegation as their needs and interests arise.

Reservoirs

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will list the pending applications for reservoirs in (a) England, (b) Wales and (c) Scotland, with the proposed nation to which the water will be supplied where different from the source; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: In England and Wales, the Environment Agency is the statutory body with a duty to secure the proper use of water resources. The agency is not aware of any pending applications for new reservoirs in England or Wales. Nor are there any applications pending with the Scottish Executive, which presently has the same responsibility in Scotland.

Waste Disposal

David Chaytor: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what advice her Department is giving to local authorities about signing long-term contracts for waste disposal services during the period when her Department is reviewing its waste strategy; and if the advice warns against signing contracts which could prevent meeting (a) future recycling targets being developed as part of the Government's waste strategy review and (b) future targets being discussed in the European Union as part of the revision of the Packaging Directive.

Michael Meacher: holding answer 26 June 2002
	Government guidance on local authority waste targets and how they should plan to achieve them is set out in 'Guidance on Municipal Waste Management Strategies', published by DETR in March 2001. However, it is for local authorities to decide on the nature and timing of any waste disposal contracts. I would expect such contracts to be designed to provide sufficient flexibility to be able to take account of, and respond to, changed circumstances during the lifetime of the contracts, including any future statutory performance standards or new opportunities for increasing recycling and composting. The Government have issued no specific guidance on future targets in the context of the current review of its waste strategy or the revision of the Packaging Directive.

Trees

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps (a) have been taken and (b) are planned by her Department to increase the number of trees planted in the United Kingdom; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: Forestry is a devolved matter. Our Forestry Strategy sets out our strategic priorities and programmes for forestry in England. Achieving a re-expansion of woodland cover is a key aim of that strategy, and is also one of our indicators of sustainable development.
	We give grants for planting new woodland under the farm woodland premium scheme and the Forestry Commission's woodland grant scheme. We also provide support for new planting in the National Forest and the Community Forests. Over the seven year period of the England Rural Development Programme our target is to create 30,000 hectares of new woodland.

Trees

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions she has had with Trees for London; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: I have not had any discussions with Trees for London.

Trees

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what financial support for tree planting has been given by her Department in each year since 1997; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: Financial support for tree planting is made under the farm woodland premium scheme (FWPS) and its predecessor the farm woodland scheme (FWS); the Forestry Commission's woodland grant scheme (WGS); and the National Forest company (NFC) tender scheme.
	Payments are as follows:
	
		£ million 
		
			   FWPS/FWS WGS NFC 
		
		
			 1997–98 4.726 8.985 1.418 
			 1998–99 5.368 10.921 1.365 
			 1999–2000 5.856 11.596 1.869 
			 2000–01 6.060 10.821 1.994 
			 2001–02 7.659 10.833 2.237

Department/EU Liaison

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many employees there are who (a) monitor and (b) liaise with EU commissioners and parliamentarians in (i) her Department and (ii) the Environment Agency, broken down into those who focus on these issues as their (A) main and (B) partial roles; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: The information requested is not held centrally by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Lamb

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much Scottish lamb has been exported to each member country of the European Union in each of the last five years.

Elliot Morley: The Overseas Trade Statistics for the UK do not separately identify exports of Scottish lamb. The table gives the volume and value of exports of total UK sheep meat to the rest of the EU in each of the last five years.
	
		
			  '000 tonnes £ million 
		
		
			 1997 106 252 
			 1998 107 213 
			 1999 108 203 
			 2000 97 198 
			 2001(5) 30 77 
		
	
	(5) Data is provisional and subject to amendment.
	Source:
	HM Customs and Excise
	Data prepared by Statistics (Commodities and Food) Accounts and Trade, ESD, DEFRA
	2001 data is provisional and subject to amendment.

Public Buildings

Debra Shipley: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how her Department is meeting the objectives of the Better Public Buildings Initiative.

Elliot Morley: DEFRA has demonstrated commitment to the Better Public Buildings initiative by publishing an Action Plan on the Departmental intranet. The quality of the Department's limited programme of new projects is benchmarked against the objectives and commitments set out within it.
	I have personally sponsored two projects, one of which has been entered for the Prime Minister's Better Public Building Award. Another recent project has been commended for its design by the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment.
	DEFRA will keep its Better Public Buildings Action Plan under review and proposes to adopt the Design Quality Indicator System for the measurement of overall design standards.

Animal Welfare

Gwyn Prosser: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what inspections her officials have made of the motor vessel Kalifeh 1 to assess its suitability for the transport of live farm animals; when inspections were made; what the outcome was of the inspections; and what such inspections her officials will conduct.

Elliot Morley: The vessel mv Kalifeh 1 has been inspected twice by DEFRA officials to assess its suitability for the transport of live animals:
	September 2001—Preliminary partial inspection at the request of and in conjunction with officials from the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, Northern Ireland, found some modification and repair was required in order to comply with legislative requirements
	April 2002—Joint inspection with representatives of the French veterinary authority found that it was in compliance with EU and GB animal welfare in transport legislation.
	The vessel was also inspected by the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, Northern Ireland before it was allowed to transport sheep from Northern Ireland in December 2001.
	All specialist livestock vessels are inspected for their suitability to transport animals prior to the first transport of animals from GB. Additional spot checks are made as appropriate to the continued use of the vessel.

TB Infected Reactors

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the (a) minimum, (b) maximum and (c) average lengths of time it has taken to remove TB infected reactors from each county that has had a breakdown over the last year.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 27 June 2002
	The data requested are given in the table.
	
		The (a) minimum, (b) maximum and (c) average lengths of time it has taken to remove TB-infected reactors from farms in each county that has had a breakdown, between 21 June 2001 and 20 June 2002
		
			   Time(7) (days)  
			 Region(6) and county Number of observations Minimum Maximum Average 
		
		
			 West 
			 Avon 33 13 (8)251 68.1 
			 Cornwall 226 6 48 20.9 
			 Devon 259 4 (8)320 16.2 
			 Dorset 18 8 26 15.4 
			 Gloucestershire 102 14 (8)174 53.6 
			 Hereford and Worcester 189 1 (8)188 25.9 
			 Shropshire 20 6 53 20.0 
			 Somerset 61 6 (8)186 20.5 
			 Wiltshire 60 5 (8)181 33.0 
			  
			 East 
			 East Sussex 11 10 26 13.1 
			 Leicestershire 5 12 12 12.0 
			 Northamptonshire 4 5 8 7.2 
			 Oxfordshire 1 20 20 20.0 
			  
			 North 
			 Cumbria 1 10 10 10.0 
			 Derbyshire 13 5 13 8.2 
			 North Yorkshire 4 6 15 8.5 
			 Northumberland 13 10 10 10.0 
			 Staffordshire 61 4 25 11.9 
			  
			 Wales 
			 Clwyd 1 13 13 13.0 
			 Dyfed 188 5 49 20.0 
			 Gwent 64 2 (8)107 19.4 
			 Gwynedd 3 26 27 26.7 
			 Powys 103 1 (8)121 21.9 
			 West Glamorgan 2 25 90 57.5 
			  
			 Scotland 
			 Aberdeenshire 2 6 6 6.0 
			 Ayrshire 1 13 13 13.0 
			 Fife 1 5 5 5.0 
			 Inverness-shire 1 7 7 7.0 
			 Kirkcudbright 2 6 8 7.0 
			 Wigtown 7 3 25 17.7 
		
	
	(6) Geographical boundaries are as used for bovine TB control.
	(7) Time between date of reading the tuberculin test and date of slaughter.
	(8) These figures represent cases where animals became reactors in the month before the disruption of normal TB control procedures caused by foot and mouth disease.
	Notes:
	The TB-infected reactors reported are animals with a reaction to the tuberculin test that were compulsorily slaughtered and had samples submitted to VLA for microbiology. Provided that they (a) had lesions of TB visible at the slaughterhouse, and/or (b) VLA found the TB organism in the sample.
	The time reported represents the number of days between reading the skin test and removing an animal from the farm. During this time, animals are valued and arrangements are made for transport, slaughter at an abattoir, etc.

Village Halls (Disabled Access)

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions she has had with (a) the Association for Communities in Rural England and (b) rural community councils on the subject of the impact of disability legislation on village halls.

Alun Michael: I have not been asked for such discussions. I am sure that individual rural community councils and their Association, with which I have regular contact, are well aware of the legislation which was put in place some seven years ago. The direct responsibility will be with the owners of specific facilities which will include independent village hall committees or, in some cases, parish or town councils or local authorities.

Village Halls (Disabled Access)

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on what help is being made available to village hall committees to cope with the implications of new disability legislation.

Alun Michael: The relevant legislation is not new and it is some seven years since the passage of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995. Time was allowed for organisations to meet the requirements of the Act.
	Since December 1996 it has been unlawful for service providers to treat disabled people less favourably for a reason related to their disability. And from 1 October 1999 service providers have been required to make reasonable adjustments to account for disabled people's needs such as providing extra help or changing the way they provide their services.
	From 2004 organisations such as village halls will have to make "reasonable adjustments" to ensure access for disabled people. In any proceedings under the Act, the costs and practicability of any adjustments would be considered in relation to a service provider's ability to pay. The extent to which the adjustment actually improves access to the service and the importance of the service to disabled people would also be taken into account.
	A large number of village halls in England already have access and facilities for disabled people although there are older halls that fall short of the requirements of the Act.
	There are a number of funds which can assist where appropriate, in addition to the community's own resources, fund raising and any assistance from the parish or town council. Local authorities that can help will include district, county and unitary authorities, depending on the arrangements in a particular locality. The Countryside Agency's Village Hall Loan Fund, administered by Action with Communities in Rural England can provide loans towards improvements for village halls. Loans are available over a period of up to five or eight years but may be longer in special cases where the need for an extended period is substantiated.
	The Countryside Agency also can offer assistance to village halls through the community service grants scheme delivered through the Vital Villages programme. It can help fund an alteration/extension of a village hall or other community building where this provides a new or extended service to the community.
	Other sources of public funding include regional development agencies, the Community Fund and the Sports Council. Many organisations achieve the necessary improvements through a mixture of funds including fund raising, commercial or personal sponsorship, parish council and local authority funding and contributions from other public funds as a result of expanding the activities available if improvements expand the suitability and use of the facilities, for instance for sport, or education or training for young people.

Water Courses

Roger Gale: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will extend the remit of the Environment Agency to include responsibility for critical ordinary water courses to main rivers.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 27 June 2002
	We recently consulted on a Review of Flood and Coastal Defence Funding including a number of options for streamlining the service. These included the possibility of transferring to the EA responsibility for watercourses presenting the most significant flood risk. We have received nearly 300 responses to the consultation, and will be considering these and our conclusions through the summer and autumn.

Chrysotile Asbestos

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the policy of her Department is on the use of chrysotile asbestos in environmental projects for which her Department is responsible.

Michael Meacher: The Asbestos Prohibitions Regulations 1985 were amended in 1999 to ban the marketing, supply and use of chrysotile from 24 November 1999, with a few limited exceptions where there is no substitute material. Directive 1999/77/EC requires the marketing, supply and use of chrysotile to be completely banned from 1 January 2005. Therefore all derogations/exemptions issued for chrysotile under the 1985 Regulations will cease to apply from that date, apart from a general exemption for research and analysis for all types of asbestos. This Department's policy on the use of chrysotile is in accordance with these legal requirements.

Refrigerators

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many refrigerators have been dumped at rubbish disposal centres in the United Kingdom in the last 12 months.

Michael Meacher: The figures for refrigerators left at civic amenity sites are not held centrally.

Bovine TB

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the payment structure is for the Government's compensation scheme for dead bovine TB-infected cattle; and what the time scale is for payment of the compensation.

Elliot Morley: It is Government policy to pay 100 per cent. of market value, with no upper limit, for cattle that are compulsorily slaughtered under TB control measures.
	The Government recognise that compensation for animals slaughtered should be paid promptly. We are aware of some delays in payment, in some areas, due to the priority given by Animal Health Offices to clearing the backlog of TB testing after the foot and mouth disease outbreak.

Bovine TB

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many confirmed TB herd incidents there have been in 2002, broken down by month, in (a) England, (b) Wales, (c) Herefordshire and (d) Worcestershire.

Elliot Morley: The information is not available in the format requested. The figures for the Hereford and Worcester Animal Health Region are given as a total. Individual totals for the separate counties are not yet available. The table details the information requested.
	
		Confirmed new TB incidents
		
			  England Wales Hereford/ Worcester 
		
		
			 January 46 7 8 
			 February 101 27 12 
			 March 177 35 32 
			 April 108 29 15 
			 May 114 17 10

Bovine TB

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much money has been spent on (a) testing and (b) investigating TB in cattle in (i) Gloucestershire and (ii) the UK in each of the last four years for which figures are available; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 2 July 2002
	The information requested is not available on a UK-wide basis. Total expenditure on TB controls, including testing, and research in GB between 1998–99 and 2000–01 is set out in the table. The information is not available by county.
	Prior to 1998–99 a different method was used to collate the statistics. Therefore we are unable to provide expenditure for four years except at disproportionate cost.
	Figures for 2001–02 are not yet finalised.
	
		Breakdown of the Government's expenditure on tackling TB in cattle -- £ million
		
			 Expenditure category 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 
		
		
			 TB controls, including TB testing 16.8 27.1 20.8 
			 Research including badger culling trial, other research and Veterinary Laboratory Agency contracts 8.0 11.1 15.1 
			  
			 Total 24.8 38.2 35.9

Bovine TB

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how long, on average, it has taken in the last year for which figures are available to compensate a farmer whose cattle have contracted bovine TB in (a) Gloucestershire and (b) England; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 2 July 2002
	The average time taken to pay compensation to a random sample of farmers whose cattle have contracted bovine TB in Gloucestershire is approximately ten and a half weeks. The same information for all TB breakdowns in Gloucestershire, or for England as a whole, is not readily available and could be produced only at disproportionate cost.
	The Government believe that compensation for animals slaughtered should be paid promptly. We are aware of payment delays in some areas due to pressure of work generated by increased bovine TB testing in order to reduce the backlog.

Are You Doing Your Bit? campaign

Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Are You Doing Your Bit? campaign.

Michael Meacher: The effectiveness of the "Are You Doing Your Bit?" campaign has been assessed by surveys of public awareness and attitudes before and after periods of advertising. As "Are You Doing Your Bit?" funds were contributed last year to rural support during the foot and mouth disease outbreak, no advertising or assessment has been carried out by the Department.

Abandoned Cars

Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many abandoned cars there have been in each year since 1997; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: Local authorities are responsible for dealing with abandoned vehicles and the Department currently holds no central records of the number of vehicles abandoned each year. However, we estimate that some 350,000 were abandoned in the United Kingdom in 2000.
	Information on the number of abandoned vehicles removed by local authorities has been collected for the first time in the Department's 2000–01 Municipal Waste Management Survey which will be published this summer.

Regulatory Impact Unit

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many members of her Department have been employed in its regulatory impact unit in the past five years; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: Since the creation of DEFRA on 8 June 2001 there have been four people working full time in the Better Regulation Unit. The unit is supervised by a member of the senior civil service who is also engaged on other duties.
	It is the job of Departmental Regulatory Impact Units to establish and promote the principles of good regulation in their Departments. The staff in each unit work closely with the officials responsible for developing policies within their Department and the Regulatory Impact Unit within Cabinet Office. They focus on those regulations that impact on business, charities, and the voluntary sector.

Curry Report

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what representations she has received from interested parties regarding the implementation of the proposals contained in the Curry report; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 2 July 2002
	The Government's discussion document "Sustainable Food and Farming: Working Together" invited views on how to take forward issues identified in the Policy Commission's report on the future of farming and food. Approximately 250 responses have been submitted, supplementing representations made during the extensive process of stakeholder engagement conducted recently. These responses are being analysed and will help inform the construction of a Strategy for Food and Farming in England, to be published this autumn.

Animals Diseases (North and South Korea)

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what checks are carried out on (a) people and (b) animals travelling from (i) North and (ii) South Korea to test for diseases related to animals.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 2 July 2002
	Targeted checks on passengers are determined by risk. We alerted enforcement officers to the outbreak of foot and mouth disease in South Korea. We received veterinary advice that there was no significant risk of travellers bringing back the virus provided rules on personal imports of animal products were observed. We hold central information on products seized. We do not hold central information on all checks that are undertaken.
	Veterinary checks and tests are carried out in accordance with EU legislation on imports of registered horses from South Korea and for captive birds from North and South Korea. Imports of non-registered horses from South Korea and all horses from North Korea are not permitted. Imports of all other animals from North and South Korea are not permitted.

CAP (Support Payments)

Archy Kirkwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many farms in the Scottish Borders receive (a) available support payments and (b) livestock support payments from CAP schemes in excess of £200,000 per year.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 2 July 2002
	The payment of Common Agricultural Policy subsidies to farmers is a devolved matter and hence information in relation to such payments to farms in the Scottish Borders is a matter for the Scottish Executive.

Kyoto Protocol

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what progress the UK has made with regard to the Kyoto Protocol.

Michael Meacher: The UK completed ratification of the Kyoto Protocol with all other EU member states on 31 May. In order for the Kyoto Protocol to enter into force, it must be ratified by at least 55 countries, including developed countries accounting for at least 55 per cent. of this industrialised group's emissions in 1990. We hope it will enter into force as soon as possible although in practice this is now unlikely before early 2003. The UK remains committed to the Kyoto Protocol as the framework for taking forward global action to tackle climate change. Our target under Kyoto is to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions by 12.5 per cent. below 1990 levels by 2008–12. UK emissions were returned to 1990 levels by 2000 and we are well on course to meet our Kyoto target.

EU Directive 1999/74/EC

Colin Breed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what economic assessment she has made of recent proposals to bring forward implementation of EU Directive 1999/74/EC.

Elliot Morley: A full regulatory impact assessment concerning implementation of council directive 1999/74/EC into domestic legislation has already been laid before the House. A partial regulatory impact assessment will form part of the forthcoming consultation on the proposal to ban enriched cages from 2012.

EU Directive 1999/74/EC

Colin Breed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent discussions and representations she has had regarding implementation of EU Directive 1999/74/EC.

Elliot Morley: Since the public consultation on implementation of EU Directive 1999/74/EC into English legislation, Ministers and officials have regularly met with stakeholders to discuss the way forward and will continue to do so.

Nitrate Vulnerable Zones

Colin Breed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what economic assessment she has made of her proposals regarding the establishment of nitrate vulnerable zones in England; and what estimates she has made of the cost of the implementation of an (a) 100 per cent., (b) 80 per cent. and (c) 55 per cent. nitrate vulnerable zone in England.

Michael Meacher: A partial regulatory impact assessment (RIA) was published in the consultation document "How should England implement the 1991 Nitrates Directive?" in December 2001. This estimated the net annual cost to the agricultural industry of applying action programme measures as £32 million for the whole country approach and £23 million for the discrete area nitrate vulnerable zone approach.
	As the Secretary of State announced on 27 June, the Government have decided to pursue the discrete area nitrate vulnerable zone approach. Since the consultation we have refined the map to identify more precisely the land draining into each nitrate-polluted or eutrophic water. We also published a revised regulatory impact assessment, which reworked the implementation costs for the refined NVZ area and also took into account comments made in response to the consultation. The revised estimate is £20 million per year.

Foot and Mouth

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent changes have been made to the European Union's policy on vaccination-to-live relating to foot and mouth; and what research she has recently commissioned on tests to differentiate between vaccinated and infected animals.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 2 July 2002
	No recent changes have been made to the European Union's policy on vaccination in relation to foot and mouth disease.
	DEFRA are currently in the process of approving a project to develop a test using non-structural proteins to distinguish between vaccinated and infected animals, and are examining its feasibility for use on a herd basis to detect exposed animals. Following on from this, a study will be undertaken to examine what would be an appropriate sampling regime to detect infection in vaccinated herds exposed to infection. However, at present, the test is not internationally recognised as a validated test.

Foot and Mouth

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  if she will make a statement on her Department's involvement with the European Parliament's foot and mouth investigation;
	(2)  what liaison there has been with representatives of the EU during the Parliament's investigation into the foot and mouth outbreak in the United Kingdom.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 27 June 2002
	DEFRA Ministers and officials have already met the European Parliament Temporary Committee into Foot and Mouth Disease. Nick Brown and Jim Scudamore met the Committee on 25 and 26 March and Lord Whitty and myself met the Committee on 8 April. The Secretary of State plans to meet the Committee on 12 September 2002.
	The DEFRA Inquiry Liaison Unit has maintained contact with and supported the Secretariat of the European Parliament Temporary Committee throughout.

Energy

Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the estimated (a) level and (b) cost of energy use in her Department and associated agencies was in each year since 1997; what proportion of energy was generated from renewable sources; and if she will make a statement.

Alun Michael: For details of the breakdown of costs of energy purchases for each English Government Department for the years 1997–98 to 1999–2000, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Buckingham (Mr. Bercow) on 19 March 2002, Official Report, column 268W. However, for convenience the data, without the footnotes, and supplemented by the respective level of energy consumption, are reproduced herein.
	The Government are keen to encourage the use of renewable energy on its estate and a significant step forward was made with the agreement, in May 2001, of the following renewable energy target across Government:
	"All Departments will ensure that, by 31 March 2003, at least 5 per cent. of their electricity comes from renewable sources that are exempt from the climate change levy, or from self-generation, provided this does not entail excessive cost. This will rise to at least 10 per cent. supply from such sources by 31 March 2008, but will be reviewed after 31 March 2003 to take account of market conditions following the introduction of renewables obligation.
	The review of 2003 will include consideration of increasing or bringing forward the target."
	Progress by individual Departments is partly dependent upon the expiry date for their current energy contracts. However, all central Government Departments in England report that they are in the process of considering how they will go about purchasing renewable energy or are considering self-generation options.
	Details of renewable energy purchases can be found in the Green Ministers Reports, copies of which are in the Library of the House, or through http://www.defra.gov.uk/ environment/greening/minister/grmin.htm. However, for convenience the relevant data are reproduced in the tables.
	Energy costs and details of renewable energy purchases for 2000–01 and 2001–02 will be published in the next Green Ministers Report in autumn 2002.
	
		Energy consumption and expenditure by Government Departments -- 1997–98 to 1999–2000
		
			   1997–98  1998–99  1999–2000  
			  Energy use (GWh) Expenditure (£) Energy use (GWh) Expenditure (£) Energy use (GWh) Expenditure (£) 
		
		
			 MAFF 39.1 1,196,306 42.1 1,270,719 39.7 1,155,485 
			 MAFF Labs 86.8 2,010,656 84.9 1,877,991 93.5 1,880,441 
			 Cabinet Office 21.7 693,234 20.2 717,622 21.0 767,895 
			 DCMS 3.1 121.916 2.4 106,634 2.0 122,991 
			 HM Customs and Excise 84.3 2,414,356 84.8 2,370,071 89.4 2,431,032 
			 DfEE 31.3 1,347,403 29.1 1,056,810 29.5 1,111,660 
			 Employment Service 171 4,848,133 177 4,946,793 190 4,960,622 
			 DETR 116 4,099,099 113 3,993,520 109 3,473,024 
			 H&SE 19.2 668,883 18.7 582,679 18.6 570,336 
			 QE2 Conf. Centre 10.4 347,200 12.8 324,614 11.8 305,739 
			 FCO 37.7 990,362 34.8 921,380 31.7 1,033,203 
			 DoH 18.3 738,355 21.6 786,383 21.8 758,908 
			 Home Office 65.4 1,792,543 69.0 1,911,139 80.5 2,378,335 
			 HM Prison Service 1,410 23,868,557 1,120 20,016,907 1,260 22,310,050 
			 Inland Revenue 245 8,192,613 275 8,138,451 269 8,772,679 
			 DfID 6.2 225,513 6.5 209,602 6.9 183,574 
			 Lord Chancellors Department 182 5,258,187 187 5,282,774 167 5,021,175 
			 DSS 519 13,805,000 468 11,474,213 472 11,327,417 
			 DTI 51.6 2,312,915 51.5 1,847,819 55.7 2,117,249 
			 HM Treasury 17,0 336,547 16.3 316,314 20.3 337,396 
		
	
	Note:
	In a few cases figures were revised from one report to another. The figures here are the latest published. The energy consumption figures are as purchased; therefore they are unadjusted for weather and floor area changes. The energy use figures in the table consist of a mix of electricity and heating fuels which have very different unit prices. Total expenditure will, therefore, depend on the total mix of fuels as well as individual prices.
	
		Purchases of electricity from renewable sources 1998–99 and 1999–2000
		
			   1999–2000  
			  Department  1998–99 Renewable sources that are exempt from the Climate Change Levy (percentage of electricity)  Other "green" electricity sources (percentage)   Total (percentage) 
		
		
			 CO 25 per cent. of No. 10 and 70 Whitehall electricity 3.5 0 3.5 
			  
			 C&E 5 per cent. of total monitored electricity 26 0 26 
			  
			 DETR 0 per cent. 10 0 20 
			  
			 DFEE 10 per cent. of electricity 10 (9)10 20 
			  
			 DH 0 per cent. 0 NHS PASA: (9)42 NHS PASA: 42 
			  
			 DSS 31 sites have all electricity supplied from renewable sources, totalling 15.2 per cent. of all DSS electricity consumption 15.2 (9)0.38 15.58 
			  
			 DTI 26 per cent. HQ consumption from renewable sources 13.3 (9)2 15.3 
			  
			 HO 0 per cent. 3 0 3 
			  
			 MAFF 0 per cent. 3 0 3 
			  
			 MOD 0 per cent. less than 1 (9)less than 1 less than 1 
		
	
	(9) Percentage of electricity is from other "green" sources.

CABINET OFFICE

EU Directives

John Bercow: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if he will list the EU directives and regulations that have been implemented through his Department in 2002; and what was the cost of each to public funds.

Douglas Alexander: The Cabinet Office has not been responsible for implementing any EU Directives or Regulations in 2002.

EU Directives

John Bercow: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if he will list the EU directives relating to his Department which have been (a) amended and (b) repealed in 2002.

Douglas Alexander: Cabinet Office Ministers were responsible for negotiating a Directive to amend the Equal Treatment Directive (76/207EC) which was undertaken by co-decision and was settled in Council on 13 June. The Cabinet Office has not been responsible for repealing any EU Directives in 2002.

Consultation Guidance

Lynne Jones: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what evaluation has been made of the impact of the How to Consult your Users guide; and if he will make a statement.

Douglas Alexander: The Cabinet Office has no plans to evaluate the impact of 'How to Consult Your Users'. Improving service delivery and policy making through consultation with users continues to be an important priority for the Government. The Office for Public Services Reform works with and encourages Government Departments and public agencies to conduct and act upon customer satisfaction surveys to ensure that the voice of the customer is central to service delivery. The Centre for Management and Policy Studies is also developing a 'consultation toolkit' to help policy makers across Government to consult more effectively on policy. The impact of the Code of Practice on Written Consultation will be evaluated from the end of this year.

Regulatory Impact Unit

Vincent Cable: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many members of his Department have been employed in its Regulatory Impact Unit in the past five years; and if he will make a statement.

Douglas Alexander: I have been asked to reply.
	The Cabinet Office's Regulatory Impact Unit had the following complement of staff over the last five years:
	
		
			 Year(10) Number of staff(11) 
		
		
			 1997–98 50 
			 1998–99 53 
			 1999–2000 53 
			 2000–01 58 
			 2001–02 65 
		
	
	(10) 1 April to 31 March.
	(11) Employed at 31 March.
	The Regulatory Impact Unit in the Cabinet Office also works closely with departmental Regulatory Impact Units. It is the job of departmental Regulatory Impact Units to establish and promote the principles of good regulation in their Departments. The staff in each unit works closely with the officials responsible for developing policies within their Department. They focus on those regulations that impact on business, charities, and the voluntary sector.

Castle Award

Bill Tynan: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if his Department has applied for a Castle award for equal pay.

Douglas Alexander: The Cabinet Office has applied for a Castle award for producing a comprehensive Equal Pay Guide for Departments and agencies. The guide will help towards meeting the Government's commitment that all Departments and agencies would undertake an equal pay review and have in place any necessary action plans by April 2003. It draws on best practice in the public and private sectors.

Annual Leave

John Bercow: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the average annual leave entitlement is for staff in his Department in 2002.

Douglas Alexander: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Member for Shipley (Mr. Leslie) on 4 February 2002, Official Report, column 708W.
	Information about average leave entitlements could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Nuclear Waste

Michael Weir: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what discussions he has had on emergency planning with local authorities along the route from Dounreay to Drigg regarding the dangers posed by moving nuclear waste by road.

David Jamieson: I have been asked to reply.
	Specific requirements concerning emergency planning are contained in The Radioactive Material (Road Transport) Regulations 2002. These place duties on consignors and carriers to have appropriate emergency procedures in place. The nuclear operators have in place an emergency response scheme, RADSAFE, which is regularly exercised in co-operation with the emergency services and local authorities.

Nuclear Waste

Michael Weir: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what assessment he has made of the implication of moving nuclear waste from Dounreay to Drigg by (a) road and (b) rail.

David Jamieson: I have been asked to reply.
	Such transport would be subject to stringent safety requirements, based upon the international "Atomic Energy Agency's Regulations for the Safe Transport of Radioactive Material" as required by (a) The Radioactive Material (Road Transport) Regulations 2002 and (b) The Packaging, Labelling and Carriage of Radioactive Material by Rail Regulations 1996.

Nuclear Waste

Michael Weir: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what discussions he has had on emergency planning with the Scottish Executive regarding the dangers posed by moving nuclear waste by (a) road and (b) rail from Dounreay to Drigg.

David Jamieson: I have been asked to reply.
	Specific requirements concerning emergency planning are contained in (a) The Radioactive Material (Road Transport) Regulations 2002 and (b) The Packaging, Labelling and Carriage of Radioactive Material by Rail Regulations 1996. These place duties on (a) consignors and carriers and (b) train operators, facility owners and rail infrastructure controllers, to have appropriate emergency procedures in place. The nuclear operators have in place an emergency response scheme, RADSAFE, which is regularly exercised in co-operation with the emergency services and local authorities.

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

Disclosure of Interests

Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what rules apply to the disclosure of interests on the part of those serving on public bodies which are responsible to her Department.

Stephen Twigg: All advisory and executive non-departmental public bodies are required to adopt a board members' code, based on guidance produced by Cabinet Office, and they should have registers of interests. The definition of interests is ultimately for individual Departments since they are best placed to decide what might be thought to influence members on their NDPBs. The following list shows the NDPBs sponsored by this department and in each case indicates the relevant Code.
	The Adult Learning Inspectorate (ALI) "Code of Practice for Board and Committee Members" is available on request from ALI and will shortly be available on the body's website.
	The British Educational Communications and Technology Agency (Becta) "Board Members Code of Practice" is available on request from the Chief Executive's Office.
	The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) "Code of Best Practice for Board Members of CITB" is available on request from the CITB Board Secretary.
	The Engineering Construction Industry Training Board (ECITB) "Code of Best Practice for Board Members of ECITB" is available on request from the ECITB Board Secretary.
	The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) "Code of Best Practice for Board Members of the HEFCE" is available on the HEFCE website.
	Investors in People UK Ltd (IiP UK) have adopted the Cabinet Office model Board Members' Code.
	The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) "Code of Conduct" can be viewed at the Council's Coventry office.
	The National College for School Leadership (NCSL) have adopted the Cabinet Office model Board Members' Code.
	The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) "Code of Practice for Members of the QCA" is available on request and will shortly be placed on the body's website.
	The School Teachers' Review Body (STRB) "Code of Conduct" is held by the Secretary.
	The Sector Skills Development Agency (SSDA) is a newly formed NDPB established from 1 April 2002, it currently has a draft "Code of Practice for Board Members".
	The Student Loans Company (SLC) "Code of Best Practice for Board Members" is held by the Company Secretary.
	The Teacher Training Agency (TTA) "Conduct of the TTA's Business" is available on request, a synopsis is available on the TTA website.

Departmental Expenditure Limit

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much and what proportion of the departmental expenditure limit for 2002–03 will be accounted for by staff costs; what the figures were for 2001–02; and if she will make a statement.

Estelle Morris: Figures for 2002–03 are unavailable because staff costs are dependent on pay negotiations that are currently under way. The figures for 2001–02 including OFSTED (taken from the 2002 Departmental Report—Cm 5402) are:
	staff costs, £140 million;
	Departmental Expenditure Limit (DEL), £19,471 million;
	staff costs as a proportion of DEL, 0.7 per cent.

Primary Schools

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will investigate the effects on primary schools league tables resulting from children who have been registered for year 6 SATS being subsequently unable to sit them through (a) illness and (b) unauthorised absence.

Stephen Twigg: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given on 24 May 2002, Official report, column 662W.
	Nationally, in 2001, the percentage of pupils absent from the Key Stage 2 tests for each subject was:
	
		
			 Subject Percentage 
		
		
			 English 1 
			 mathematics 1 
			 science 2

School Visits

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  if she will list the schools she has visited since she became Secretary of State;
	(2)  how many of the schools she has visited in England and Wales are unsatisfactory;
	(3)  what criteria she has used to decide which of the schools she has visited are unsatisfactory;
	(4)  if she will list the schools she has visited that are unsatisfactory;
	(5)  what her estimate is of the total number of schools in England and Wales that are unsatisfactory.

Phil Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which secondary comprehensive schools she has visited since 1997; and which were unsatisfactory.

David Miliband: holding answer 1 July 2002
	My right hon. Friend has visited 33 schools in England since becoming Secretary of State last year. These schools are as listed. She also visited many schools in her previous ministerial posts between 1997 and 2001. Two of the schools she has visited as Secretary of State were designated by Ofsted as requiring special measures because they were failing to provide pupils with an acceptable standard of education. Just under 300 schools in England—less than 1.3 per cent. of the total—are currently designated by Ofsted as requiring special measures. A further 2.4 per cent. of schools are designated by Ofsted as having serious weaknesses.
	2001
	1. 12 June—Henry Compton school, London, SW6 6SN
	2. 15 June—Mapledene junior school, Birmingham
	3. 15 June—Whittington Oval school, Birmingham
	4. 21 June—St. Paul's Way community school, London E3 4AN
	5. 22 June—Cottesbrooke junior school, Birmingham
	6. 13 July—Redhill primary school, Birmingham
	7. 5 September—Swanlea school, London, E1 5DJ
	8. 10 September—Hamilton special school, Birmingham
	9. 17 September—Blatchington Mill school, East Sussex
	10. 20 September—Golden Hillock school, Birmingham
	11. 24 September—St. Thomas More school, Birmingham
	12. 9 October—Langdon school, London E6 2PS
	13. 19 October—Corpus Christi Catholic primary school, Birmingham
	14. 2 November—Shaw Hill primary school, Birmingham
	15. 15 November—Sheldon Heath school, Birmingham
	16. 21 November—Lammas school, London, E10 7LZ
	17. 26 November—Whalley Range high school, Manchester
	18. 10 December—Greensward college, Essex
	2002
	19. 18 January—Blakenhale infant school, Birmingham
	20. 13 March—Stanley Technical high school, London, SE25 6AD
	21. 14 March—Fawkham primary school, Kent
	22. 20 March—Oaklands school, Tower Hamlets, London
	23. 22 March—St. Bernadette's school, Birmingham
	24. 10 April—Charles Edward Brooke primary school, London, SW9 6UL
	25. 15 April—Norton primary school, Stoke
	26. 15 April—Blurton primary school, Stoke
	27. 19 April—Hall Green primary school, Birmingham
	28. 13 May—St. Monica's primary school, London, N14 7HE
	29. 21 May—Beacon Hill special school, Ipswich
	30. 31 May—Yardley infant school, Birmingham
	31. 10 June—Millennium school, London, SE10 0BG
	32. 14 June—Acock's Green infant school, Birmingham
	33. 26 June—Oliver Goldsmith primary school, Camberwell, London.

Extended School Programme

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what progress has been made with her Department's extended school programme.

Stephen Twigg: We are encouraging all schools to extend the services they offer for the benefit of pupils, their families and the wider community. The Education Bill, currently before Parliament, will establish a clear legal framework for schools wanting to provide extended services. We intend to publish guidance later this year to help schools and their partners develop this approach. We also intend to support a number of pathfinder projects to demonstrate a range of patterns in different settings. We will evaluate these projects and disseminate good practice.

Overseas Trained Teachers

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what investigation she carries out into those agencies which are supplying overseas trained teachers for employment in British schools;
	(2)  what help is available to overseas trained teachers who have found employment in British schools for familiarisation with the education system; and for what period this lasts;
	(3)  if she will make a statement on whether overseas trained teachers are subject to normal qualified teacher status procedures;
	(4)  what the cost has been to the British education system of employing overseas trained teachers in each year since 1999.

David Miliband: Employment agencies in Great Britain are regulated under the Employment Agencies Act 1973 and associated regulations, which are the responsibility of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry. The DTI Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate enforces the legislation and investigates complaints about the conduct of agencies.
	Induction arrangements for new teachers are the responsibility of the recruiting school or local education authority. Many provide such training and support networks. Those in London will, in future, be further supported by the new Recruitment and Retention Unit in the Government office for London.
	In order to teach in a maintained school in England it is generally necessary to hold Qualified Teacher Status (QTS). Current regulations do not allow for the automatic recognition of teaching qualifications gained abroad, unless the teacher is a national of a member state of the European Economic Area (EEA). The Education (Teachers) Qualifications and Health Standards Regulations 1999 (as amended) allow schools to appoint overseas trained teachers without QTS in three circumstances: as trainees on an employment based route; as a temporary teacher in a school or a number of schools for up to four years without QTS; as 'instructors'—persons offering particular skills who may be appointed when no qualified teacher with such skills is available.
	The information about costs is not collected centrally.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Competitive Tendering

Tim Collins: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on how many occasions in the last 12 months the requirement to engage in a competitive tendering process has been waived by his Department due to national security obligations under paragraph 6(h) of the supply regulations.

Jane Kennedy: None.

North Belfast

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many juveniles have been prosecuted since 1 July 2001 arising out of disturbances in North Belfast.

Jane Kennedy: The information requested is not available at this time due to a database upgrading exercise being undertaken which should be concluded by late summer 2002.

Regulatory Impact Unit

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many members of his Department have been employed in its regulatory impact unit in the past five years; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Kennedy: None.

Organised Crime Task Force

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on the Organised Crime Task Force's second annual threat assessment.

Jane Kennedy: I congratulate the Organised Crime Task Force, on their first year's work. Much has been achieved—the figures in the second annual threat assessment and strategy documents speak for themselves—but we are under no illusions that there is much more to be done. Fighting organised crime will be a long and hard struggle. This year, as it was last year, the priority areas for concerted multi-agency effort are extortion, drugs, oils-related fraud, tobacco and alcohol duty evasion and money laundering. In addition, we have added two new strategic priority areas: the trade in counterfeit goods, as this has an on-going potential to affect investment in Northern Ireland; and armed robbery, which is on the increase here, while declining elsewhere in the United Kingdom.
	No one should doubt that we have the resources and determination to pursue it to the utmost. The publication of the threat assessment and strategy for dealing with organised crime in Northern Ireland, shows that the agencies involved have made an impressive start.

Ministerial Accommodation

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what publicly owned accommodation is made available to him in his official role; how many nights he has been in residence at each of these properties in the last 12 months; and what the total cost is of maintaining each of these properties.

John Reid: Accommodation in Hillsborough Castle is made available to me as a residence while in Northern Ireland. The Castle is also Her Majesty the Queen's residence in the province, is used as a conference centre, hosts charity fund raising events and is open to the public.
	Between April 2001 and March 2002 I stayed there for 144 nights and between March 2002 and May 2002 I have stayed for 29 nights.
	The total running costs for Hillsborough Castle for the last financial year were £1.1 million.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Diversity Agenda

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what initiatives he has undertaken since 7 June concerning the Diversity Agenda at his Department.

Mike O'Brien: The FCO continues to work on the implementation of its diversity strategy, "Investing for Tomorrow", a copy of which is in the Library of the House. The strategy was refreshed earlier this year and incorporates duties under the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, also discussed diversity issues when he met Trade Union representatives on 24 June.

Zimbabwean Police

Ann Clwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the end use monitoring undertaken by his Department of the use of the Land Rover Defender vehicles provided to the Zimbabwean Police as part of a DfID funded project.

Denis MacShane: This Department has taken a close interest in the use made by the Zimbabwe Republic Police of Land Rovers partly funded by HMG. Prior to the general elections in early 2000, we registered our strong concern with the Zimbabwean Home Minister that they were being used for political ends. The lack of a satisfactory response led to the decision taken by my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for International Development, to suspend further deliveries in May 2000.

Gujarat

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the recent disturbances in the Gujarat region of India.

Mike O'Brien: We share my hon. Friends' concerns over the recent communal violence and deaths in Gujarat. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs has been in regular contact with the Governnment of India on the situation in Gujarat, including during his most recent visit to India on 29 May, when he raised this with Mr. Advani, the then Indian Minister for Home Affairs. He raised the case of the four British nationals who were attacked by a mob on 28 February and urged that those responsible be brought to justice. The Government of India have themselves strongly condemned the violence in Gujarat, and have given assurances, which we welcome, that they will take action to bring to justice perpetrators of all the killings and violence. My right hon. Friend has also met the families of the four British nationals who were attacked during the violence, and raised their cases with the Government of India during his 29 May visit.

Poland

Wayne David: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement about German land claims in that part of Poland ceded by Germany in 1945.

Peter Hain: The administrative borders between Poland and Germany were drawn up as part of the Potsdam Agreement in 1945 pending a final delimitation of borders at a peace settlement. No peace settlement was ever concluded. The borders between Poland and the Federal Republic of Germany were confirmed by the 1990 Treaty of Final Settlement with Respect to Germany signed by the Allied powers and the then two German states. They were confirmed in bilateral treaties agreed by Poland and the Federal Republic of Germany in November 1990 and June 1991.

Carpathian Initiative

Richard Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what support the Government are providing to the Carpathian Initiative; and if he will make a statement.

Peter Hain: The Department for International Development has contributed £180,000 to a project in Miercurea Ciuc, Romania to promote sustainable economic regeneration through public/private partnerships. The implementing agencies for this project are the Romanian Environmental Partnership Foundation and the Polish Environmental Partnership Foundation, both of which have links with the Carpathian Initiative. However, HMG provides no direct funding support to the Carpathian Initiative.

MI6

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs at what level, and under what circumstances, it can be decided within MI6 that information held may not be seen by Ministers.

Jack Straw: holding answer 2 July. 2002
	The Secret Intelligence Service carries out its functions under the Intelligence Services Act 1994 under my authority. The Act provides for the Chief of SIS to be appointed by the Secretary of State and imposes a duty on the Chief to ensure that there are arrangements, which I approve, for securing that no information is obtained by SIS except so far as is necessary for the proper discharge of its functions. I can foresee no circumstances in which information could be withheld from Ministers given these statutory responsibilities.

Communications (Interception)

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make it his policy that, where a foreign security agency is asked by a UK body authorised to carry out interception of communications on its behalf relating to a UK citizen, there shall be a requirement for permission to be sought as if the interception were to be carried out by the UK body itself.

Jack Straw: holding answer 2 July 2002
	In so far as the agencies for which I have responsibility undertake interception activities, this is consistent with the requirements of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 and the Intelligence Services Act 1994. It is not government policy to comment on any intelligence arrangements that might exist between the UK and other countries.

Government Communications Headquarters

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs under what circumstances GCHQ facilities are used to (a) monitor and (b) intercept communications involving United Kingdom nationals where the communication originates or terminates outside the United Kingdom.

Jack Straw: It is a long-standing practice of this Government and previous Administrations not to comment on the activities of the intelligence services. The interception of communications is governed by the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 and overseen by the Interception of Communications Commissioner. GCHQ, like any other Government agency empowered to apply for a warrant under the Act, may intercept "external communications" (as defined by the Act) if the conditions required for the issuing of a warrant set out in Sections 5, 8 and 15 and 16 are met.

Kenya

Tony Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information he has collated about the Government of Kenya's proposals to change the law allowing an extension of the term of the Kenyan Parliament.

Denis MacShane: On 18 June some KANU MPs called for extension of the current Parliament to allow time for the constitutional review to be completed and for the new constitution to be passed into law before the next general election. An extension would require Parliament to pass a constitutional amendment. To date Parliament has not debated the issue.

Kenya

Tony Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Government of Kenya about the need for free and fair parliamentary elections there.

Denis MacShane: The need for free and fair elections features regularly in our contacts with the Kenyan Government and officials.

Visa Applications

Simon Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many visa applications from Arab countries have been rejected in each month since September 1999.

Mike O'Brien: Figures for the number of applications refused between September 1999 and May 2002 in Arab countries are listed in the table.
	
		Number of refusals at Arab posts
		
			 Country Post January February March April May June 
		
		
			 1999
			 UAE Abu Dhabi and Dubai — — — — — — 
			 Jordan Amman — — — — — — 
			 Bahrain Bahrain — — — — — — 
			 Lebanon Beirut — — — — — — 
			 Egypt Cairo — — — — — — 
			 Morocco Casablanca — — — — — — 
			 Syria Damascus — — — — — — 
			 Qatar Doha — — — — — — 
			 Kuwait Kuwait — — — — — — 
			 Oman Muscat — — — — — — 
			 Saudi Arabia Riyadh and Jedda — — — — — — 
			 Yemen Sana'a — — — — — — 
			 Tunisia Tunis — — — — — — 
			 Total  — — — — — — 
			 
			 2000
			 UAE Abu Dhabi and Dubai 135 123 123 77 164 153 
			 Jordan Amman 4 17 15 18 24 9 
			 Bahrain Bahrain 2 4 1 5 7 17 
			 Lebanon Beirut 10 6 9 4 13 6 
			 Egypt Cairo 52 39 29 42 63 60 
			 Morocco Casablanca 19 22 44 20 37 37 
			 Syria Damascus 22 24 74 26 65 58 
			 Qatar Doha 9 10 11 8 21 41 
			 Kuwait Kuwait 72 57 38 47 62 69 
			 Oman Muscat 8 5 11 9 11 7 
			 Saudi Arabia Riyadh and Jedda 44 79 63 32 102 168 
			 Yemen Sana'a 18 71 38 67 86 70 
			 Tunisia Tunis 52 69 68 65 87 92 
			 Total  447 526 524 420 742 787 
			 
			 2001
			 UAE Abu Dhabi and Dubai 84 133 84 68 200 258 
			 Algeria Algiers 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Jordan Amman 16 20 19 16 4 9 
			 Bahrain Bahrain 1 1 3 3 4 8 
			 Lebanon Beirut 12 2 3 4 5 2 
			 Egypt Cairo 98 65 72 35 112 78 
			 Morocco Casablanca 14 19 14 13 14 11 
			 Syria Damascus 26 53 50 69 53 57 
			 Qatar Doha 16 19 12 10 29 33 
			 Saudi Arabia Riyadh and Jedda 53 49 48 43 69 79 
			 Kuwait Kuwait 57 19 32 31 30 74 
			 Oman Muscat 10 12 7 11 15 15 
			 Yemen Sana'a 56 33 16 36 22 46 
			 Libya Tripoli 28 30 44 53 102 20 
			 Tunisia Tunis 98 45 57 81 55 60 
			 Total  569 500 461 473 714 750 
			 
			 2002
			 UAE Abu Dhabi and Dubai 171 137 112 206 193 — 
			 Algeria Algiers 0 0 0 0 0 — 
			 Jordan Amman 13 24 18 32 15 — 
			 Bahrain Bahrain 6 4 11 3 12 — 
			 Lebanon Beirut 1 3 16 22 10 — 
			 Egypt Cairo 107 102 101 99 147 — 
			 Morocco Casablanca and Rabat(12) 23 23 26 31 25 — 
			 Syria Damascus 29 69 83 66 58 — 
			 Qatar Doha 9 21 21 25 30 — 
			 Saudi Arabia Jedda 101 69 47 46 62 — 
			 Kuwait Kuwait 31 36 33 53 50 — 
			 Oman Muscat 5 13 10 17 25 — 
			 Yemen Sana'a 37 49 47 70 51 — 
			 Libya Tripoli 138 131 70 72 142 — 
			 Tunisia Tunis 90 77 97 70 91 — 
			 Total  761 758 692 812 911 — 
		
	
	(12) From April 2002
	Note:
	We are awaiting figures for May 2002
	
		Number of refusals at Arab posts
		
			 Country Post July August September October November December 
		
		
			 1999
			 UAE Abu Dhabi and Dubai — — 95 64 148 48 
			 Jordan Amman — — 39 24 20 12 
			 Bahrain Bahrain — — 11 3 7 2 
			 Lebanon Beirut — — 29 13 22 12 
			 Egypt Cairo — — 80 44 42 20 
			 Morocco Casablanca — — 39 36 22 57 
			 Syria Damascus — — 55 48 22 12 
			 Qatar Doha — — 17 17 17 10 
			 Kuwait Kuwait — — 24 28 47 52 
			 Oman Muscat — — 8 4 8 5 
			 Saudi Arabia Riyadh and Jedda — — 142 103 101 92 
			 Yemen Sana'a — — 9 10 32 35 
			 Tunisia Tunis — — 115 75 98 56 
			 Total  — — 663 469 586 413 
			 
			 2000
			 UAE Abu Dhabi and Dubai 164 132 119 143 111 55 
			 Jordan Amman 14 20 14 7 22 8 
			 Bahrain Bahrain 42 8 6 6 6 3 
			 Lebanon Beirut 21 13 27 3 5 5 
			 Egypt Cairo 63 80 57 50 78 77 
			 Morocco Casablanca 60 54 44 27 25 37 
			 Syria Damascus 79 34 43 52 73 35 
			 Qatar Doha 71 49 16 16 13 13 
			 Kuwait Kuwait 60 54 40 50 55 57 
			 Oman Muscat 24 22 10 8 6 6 
			 Saudi Arabia Riyadh and Jedda 181 168 101 66 60 44 
			 Yemen Sana'a 57 74 87 40 43 30 
			 Tunisia Tunis 89 123 115 106 117 66 
			 Total  925 831 679 574 614 436 
			 
			 2001
			 UAE Abu Dhabi and Dubai 346 239 198 226 110 53 
			 Algeria Algiers 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Jordan Amman 20 27 29 5 10 4 
			 Bahrain Bahrain 9 9 12 4 2 2 
			 Lebanon Beirut 7 6 9 3 3 1 
			 Egypt Cairo 83 147 136 97 81 14 
			 Morocco Casablanca 28 28 19 12 11 15 
			 Syria Damascus 96 77 54 92 53 23 
			 Qatar Doha 52 34 18 10 10 6 
			 Saudi Arabia Riyadh and Jedda 83 92 26 59 35 21 
			 Kuwait Kuwait 85 65 46 28 24 16 
			 Oman Muscat 15 16 9 9 7 5 
			 Yemen Sana'a 27 15 28 25 45 20 
			 Libya Tripoli 40 169 185 122 84 40 
			 Tunisia Tunis 77 89 83 55 29 26 
			 Total  968 1,013 852 747 504 246

Child Abduction

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what agreements there are with other states regarding international child abduction by a parent.

Mike O'Brien: The Hague Convention on the civil aspects of international child abduction seeks to return children who have been abducted abroad to their country of habitual residence, where issues of custody and contact can be resolved through the courts. There are prescribed criteria and processes for returning children under this convention. The Hague Convention is in force between the UK and 54 other countries world wide. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is exploring the possibility of establishing bi-lateral agreements with countries that are not members of the Hague Convention.

Child Abduction

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with European and US counterparts regarding international child abduction by a parent.

Mike O'Brien: Member states of the European Union and the United States are all Parties to the Hague Convention on International Child Abduction. The Lord Chancellor's Department is the lead Department for cases of child abduction to and from Hague Convention countries. In March 2001, the Special Commission of the Hague Convention on International Child Abduction formally met, as it does every four years. The purpose of the Special Commission is to discuss the operation of the Convention. Representatives from the US attended the Commission, as did all EU member states.

Child Abduction

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assistance his Department provides in cases of abduction of a child by one of the parents from the UK to another country.

Denis MacShane: The Hague Convention is the international instrument covering cases of child abduction. Cases of child abduction involving countries which are party to the Hague Convention are dealt with by the Lord Chancellor's Department in England and Wales. The Scottish Executive and the Northern Ireland Courts Service deal with their own cases. The FCO can become involved in Hague Convention cases where diplomatic intervention may be of assistance to families.
	The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is the lead Department for cases in countries which are not Party to the Hague Convention. In non-Hague Convention cases, there is no prescribed formula to facilitate the return of an abducted child. Therefore, parents must initiate proceedings in the local courts (and often also in the UK courts) for the return of their child. Consular staff, both in London and at our embassies and high commissions overseas, are able to assist parents in this procedure by, for example, helping them find a local lawyer, arranging welfare visits and attending court hearings as the legal process progresses.

Senegal

Richard Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the renewal of the fisheries protocol between the European Union and Senegal.

Elliot Morley: I have been asked to reply.
	The new protocol on fisheries between the EU and Senegal was initialled by both parties on 25 June. The details of this protocol will not be known until the Commission has made its presentation to member states at the External Fisheries working group in Brussels on 3 and 4 of July, when we shall examine them carefully. We wish to ensure that such agreements take proper account of environmental and developmental concerns, an issue which we have raised before and which we intend to pursue as part of the reform of the common fisheries policy.

Departmental Expenditure Limit

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much and what proportion of the departmental expenditure limit for 2002–03 had been spent by 31 May; what the figures were for 2001–02; and if he will make a statement.

Denis MacShane: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given him by my right hon. Friend the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 17 June 2002, Official Report, column 130W.

Convention on the Future of Europe

Richard Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the status is of those members of the Convention on the Future of Europe who were appointed by Governments which have subsequently lost office; and if he will list the members of the Convention who were appointed as (a) representatives of Governments which have subsequently lost office and (b) representatives of national parliaments who have lost their seats since the Convention's membership was first established, in respect of both (i) the member states and (ii) candidate countries.

Peter Hain: Representatives appointed to the Convention by the governments of Member States and Accession Countries do not have to be members of their governments. It is therefore up to each government whether to keep or replace its representative. There have been four changes of government (France, Portugal, the Netherlands and Hungary) and six elections since the inauguration of the Convention.
	The French and Dutch government representatives have so far remained unchanged. Prof Ernani Lopes has succeeded Joao Vallera as the Portuguese government representative, and Laszlo Kovacs has succeeded Janos Martonyi as Hungarian government representative. One parliamentary representative to the Convention has lost his seat, Alain Barrau. It is not yet clear what decision the French Parliament will take.

Convention on the Future of Europe

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  what correspondence he has received from the International Association of Young Marianas with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what correspondence he has received from the Christian Academy for European Dialogue with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  what correspondence he has received from the Free University of Urbina with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(4)  what correspondence he has received from the International Movement for Scientific Leisure with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(5)  what correspondence he has received from the New Academy of Istropolitana with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(6)  what correspondence he has received from the Copernicus Society, Dortmund with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(7)  what correspondence he has received from the Fulda Technical College, Germany with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(8)  what correspondence he has received from the International ATD Fourth World Youth Movement with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(9)  what correspondence he has received from the Friuli European Academy, Venice with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(10)  what correspondence he has received from the Institute for Canon Law and History with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(11)  what correspondence he has received from the Union of Young European Musicians with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(12)  what correspondence he has received from the Association of European University Students with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(13)  what correspondence he has received from the University of Trento with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(14)  what correspondence he has received from the European Federal Movement with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(15)  what correspondence he has received from the International Voluntary Service for Women and Education Suiluppo with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(16)  what correspondence he has received from the University of Milan with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(17)  what correspondence he has received from the University of Messina with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(18)  what correspondence he has received from the International Centre for European Education with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(19)  what correspondence he has received from the Evangelical Academy of Vienna with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(20)  what correspondence he has received from the Committee for Christian Living with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(21)  what correspondence he has received from the Pro Asylum Movement with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(22)  what correspondence he has received from the European Council of Young Farmers with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(23)  what correspondence he has received from the Foundation for the Rights of Future Generations with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(24)  what correspondence he has received from the Centre for European Studies of Strasbourg with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(25)  what correspondence he has received from Team Europe Rural Coordinator, Liguria with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(26)  what correspondence he has received from the Orthodox Academy of Crete with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(27)  what correspondence he has received from the Institute of European Studies, University of Valladolid, Spain with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(28)  what correspondence he has received from the Europa Salzburg Educational Institute with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(29)  what correspondence he has received from the Cultural Forum of Stuttgart with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(30)  what correspondence he has received from the Law Faculty, University of Sirona, Spain with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(31)  what correspondence he has received from the Wolfsburg Catholic Academy with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(32)  what correspondence he has received from the Honeysuckle Youth Association with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(33)  what correspondence he has received from the Thuringia European Civil Service Academy with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(34)  what correspondence he has received from the Free University of Brussels with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(35)  what correspondence he has received from the Rhineland Evangelical Church with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(36)  what correspondence he has received from the Association of Italian Builders with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(37)  what correspondence he has received from the Mediterranean Foundation, University of Almeria, with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(38)  what correspondence he has received from Young Christian Workers with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(39)  what correspondence he has received from the International European Commission for Church and School with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(40)  what correspondence he has received from the International Federation of Educational Communities with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(41)  what correspondence he has received from the European Institute of the Law Faculty of Lisbon with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(42)  what correspondence he has received from the University of Rome, Tor Vergata History Department with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(43)  what correspondence he has received from Rural and Environmental Development with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(44)  what correspondence he has received from the University of Milan, Department of International Affairs with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(45)  what correspondence he has received from the University of Sannoi's Economics Faculty with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(46)  what correspondence he has received from Trans Europe Halles with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(47)  what correspondence he has received from the Globetrotter Scouts with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(48)  what correspondence he has received from the International Foundation of Mediterranean Theatre with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(49)  what correspondence he has received from the Jean Monnet University, St. Etienne with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(50)  what correspondence he has received from the European Academy of Berlin with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(51)  what correspondence he has received from the Institute for Austrian and Internation, Tax Law, Vienna with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(52)  what correspondence he has received from the Complutense University of Madrid with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(53)  what correspondence he has received from the Joint Bureau for European Training with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(54)  what correspondence he has received from the TMC Foundation Asser Institute, The Hague with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(55)  what correspondence he has received from Women for Europe with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(56)  what correspondence he has received from Eruptions, the Intra-Mediterranean Network with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(57)  what correspondence he has received from the General Foundation of the Complutense University of Madrid with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(58)  what correspondence he has received from the European Centre for Federalism, University of Tubingen with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(59)  what correspondence he has received from the European Forum of Associations for Heritage with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(60)  what correspondence he has received from the Association of Aid Workers with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(61)  what correspondence he has received from the Institute for International Political Studies with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(62)  what correspondence he has received from the University of Sallati, Romania with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(63)  what correspondence he has received from the International Federation for Educational Exchanges for Children with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(64)  what correspondence he has received from the Johanniter Accident Assistance with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(65)  what correspondence he has received from the Ateneo School 'Jean Monnet', University of Naples with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(66)  what correspondence he has received from the European Institute of the University of Geneva with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(67)  what correspondence he has received from the Young International Rural Agricultural Movement with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(68)  what correspondence he has received from the Federation of Integration Centres with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(69)  what correspondence he has received from the Eurit Centre, Italy with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(70)  what correspondence he has received from The Isthmus with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(71)  what correspondence he has received from the National Union of Sports and Open Air Centres, France with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement.
	(72)  what correspondence he has received from the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe with particular reference to the convention on the future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(73)  what correspondence he has received from the New Cologne Cultural Network with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(74)  what correspondence he has received from the European University and Research Centre, Bologna with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe, when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(75)  what correspondence he has received from the Further Education Institute of the University of Pompeu Fabra with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(76)  what correspondence he has received from the Business University Luigi Bocconni, Milan with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(77)  what correspondence he has received from the University of the Basque Country. with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(78)  what correspondence he has received from the Marahens Evangelical-Lutheran with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(79)  what correspondence he has received from the European Union Youth Forum with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(80)  what correspondence he has received from Cantal Europe with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(81)  what correspondence he has received from the European Federation of Freemasons with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(82)  what correspondence he has received from the Second University of Naples with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(83)  what correspondence he has received from Austrian Culture with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(84)  what correspondence he has received from the Tutzing Evangelical Academy with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(85)  what correspondence he has received from the Study Group on European Integration, Bonn with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(86)  what correspondence he has received from the European Network of Young Gipsies with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(87)  what correspondence he has received from the European Association of Law Students with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(88)  what correspondence he has received from the University La Sapienza of Rome's Economics faculty with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(89)  what correspondence he has received from the Centre for European Integration Studies, Rhine Friedrich-Wilhelm University Bonn with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(90)  what correspondence he has received from the Knowledge and Politics Foundation with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(91)  what correspondence he has received from the Alexander Langer Foundation with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(92)  what correspondence he has received from the National Distance Learning University, Madrid with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(93)  what correspondence he has received from the Centre for European Studies, University of Alacala de Honares with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(94)  what correspondence he has received from Euro Youth 2000 with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(95)  what correspondence he has received from the University of Cordova, Spain with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(96)  what correspondence he has received from the Aurich Europehouse with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(97)  what correspondence he has received from the Federation of Young European Ecologists with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(98)  what correspondence he has received from Fonda community life with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(99)  what correspondence he has received from the Society for Basque Studies, San Sebastian, Spain with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(100)  what correspondence he has received from the European Citizens' Academy with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(101)  what correspondence he has received from the Forum Civilian Peace Service with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(102)  what correspondence he has received from the Wachau Europa Forum with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(103)  what correspondence he has received from the University of Ljubijana's Economics Faculty with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(104)  what correspondence he has received from Plan Continent with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(105)  what correspondence he has received from the Europass Theatre Union with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(106)  what correspondence he has received from the Study Center of Reggio Emilia with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(107)  what correspondence he has received from the International Rainbow Week Movement with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(108)  what correspondence he has received from the Catholic University of Leuven's Law Faculty with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement;
	(109)  what correspondence he has received from the University Centre of Aziendali, Palermo with particular reference to the Convention on the Future of Europe; when he last met representatives from that body; what his policy is towards continuing funding of it by the European Union; what the target audiences of its publications have been; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of their use in schools and universities with the requirements in the Education Act 1996 for balance in the provision of information; and if he will make a statement.

Peter Hain: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave him on 27 June 2002, Official Report, column 1026W.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Child Support

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what limit there will be on the pension contribution of a non-resident parent in calculating the assessment under the new Child Support Agency formula.

Malcolm Wicks: The new calculation will allow for 100 per cent. of any contributions to an Inland Revenue approved occupational, or personal pension scheme. The Inland Revenue sets limits on the percentage of income that can be contributed to a pension scheme; these depend on the contributor's earnings and the date they joined the scheme.

Pensions

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the answer of 20 May ref 57511 on pensions, what the latest years for which estimates are available on a basis consistent with that used in the 1998 Pensions Green Paper to provide estimates for 1998 are for (a) GAD and DWP data on state spending on pensions and (b) ONS estimates of the size of private pensions in payment; and what the estimates are in both cases.

Ian McCartney: holding answer 23 May 2002
	Table A shows the proportion of pension income coming from the state and private sources in each year from 1997–98 to 1999–2000. State pension income corresponds to benefit income as defined in the PI Series. Private pension income corresponds to the sum of occupational pension income and investment income in the PI Series. The percentage figures in Table 1 are derived directly from the average gross income totals in Table 1 of the PI Series (1999–2000).
	
		Table A: Proportion of pension income coming from state and private sources -- Percentage
		
			   1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 
		
		
			 State pension income 58 56 57 
			 Private pension income 42 44 43 
		
	
	Note:
	All figures rounded to nearest 1 per cent.
	State pension income corresponds to PI definition of 'Benefit Income', which includes national insurance benefits received by the elderly, income-related benefits and disability benefits.
	Private pension income corresponds to the sum of occupational pension income and investment income. The latter includes income from annuities, personal pensions, property, stocks and shares, as well as income from savings.
	For further information on PI methodology and definitions see Section 5, page 10 of Pensioners' Incomes Series (1999–2000).
	As the PI Series shows, pensioners also receive income from earnings and 'other' sources. For reference, therefore, it is also possible to estimate the proportion of retirement income comes from state and private sources. This is done in Table B. As with Table A, the proportions here are derived directly from the average gross income totals in Table 1 of the PI Series (1999–2000).
	
		Table B: Proportion of retirement income coming from state and private sources -- Percentage
		
			   1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 
		
		
			 State retirement income 53 51 52 
			 Private retirement income 47 49 48 
		
	
	Note:
	All figures rounded to nearest 1 per cent.
	State retirement income corresponds to PI definition of 'Benefit Income', which includes national insurance benefits received by the elderly, income-related benefits and disability benefits.
	Private retirement income corresponds to the sum of occupational pension income, earnings, 'other' income and investment income. Investment income includes income from annuities, personal pensions, property, stocks and shares, as well as income from savings. 'Other' income includes private benefits such as those from Friendly Societies, and the income of any dependent children, as well as other miscellaneous sources of income.For further information on PI methodology and definitions see Section 5, page 10 of Pensioners' Incomes Series (1999–2000).

Pensions

Chris Mullin: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if the National Pensioners Convention is among the organisations he is proposing to consult regarding the draft National Strategy report on pensions; and when the consultation is to take place.

Ian McCartney: The National Pensioners Convention is one of a range of organisations which the Department for Work and Pensions has regular contact with. These organisations have been invited to a meeting in July concerning the National Strategy Report.

Computers

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what measures are (a) in place and (b) under discussion in his Department in order to ensure compliance with the WE Directive.

Nick Brown: I refer my hon. Friend to the written answer given by my hon. Friend the Minister of State for Trade and Industry (Mr. Wilson) on 12 June 2002, Official Report, 1266W.

Benefit Sanctions

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Somerton and Frome (Mr. Heath), of 20 May 2002, Official Report, column 29W, what research has been undertaken by his Department into the effects of benefit sanctions; and if he will place a copy of each title in the Library.

Malcolm Wicks: The research carried out by the Department into the effects of sanctions is listed. Copies of the research reports are available in the Library.
	Unemployment and Jobseeking. DSS Research Report 62, TSO 1997;
	Unemployment and Jobseeking after the Introduction of Jobseeker's Allowance. DSS Research Report 99, TSO 1999;
	Understanding the Impact of Jobseeker's Allowance. DSS Research Report 11, TSO 2000;
	Evaluating Jobseeker's Allowance: A summary of the research findings. DSS Research Report 116, TSO 2000;
	Evaluation of Decision Making and Appeals. Employment Service Research Report 83, published July 2001;
	The impact of the 26 week sanctioning regime. Employment Service Research Report 100, by British Market Research Bureau, published November 2001;
	More Frequent Attendance (MFA) Post implementation Review. Employment Service Research Report 105, published January 2002.

Staff Training

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much the Department has spent on staff training and development in each of the last five years.

Ian McCartney: Data on expenditure on staff training and development are available only for the last three years. The Department was created in June 2001. The figures for the two earlier years have been collated from data sources in the former Employment Service and Department of Social Security.
	
		
			   Expenditure (£ million) Percentage of running costs 
		
		
			 1999–2000 81.145 3.19 
			 2000–01 90.034 3.68 
			 2001–02 97.319 3.76 
		
	
	The figures include trainee and trainer costs, management and administration overheads, and spend on external training provided through Departmental contracts. Costs for accommodation where Departmental estate has been used are not included. (In addition to formal training, staff are developed by a variety of other means.)
	The Department is committed to the principles of Investors in People. It considers that effective investment in training and development is essential in equipping staff with the skills and knowledge necessary to meet Government goals and deliver modern services.

Housing Benefit

Neil Gerrard: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to change the practice of allowing local authorities to make direct payment of housing benefit to registered social landlords; and if he will make a statement.

Malcolm Wicks: We recognise that direct payments of housing benefit to registered social landlords can be both efficient and convenient. However, it has often been argued that routinely paying benefit to the landlord rather than to the tenant whose entitlement it is, can inhibit tenants' choice and discourage personal responsibility. Therefore, although there are no immediate plans to change the current system, it is an issue that we will continue to keep under close review.

New Deal

Eric Martlew: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans there are to increase the financial incentives to employers who employ and retain young people under the New Deal programme.

Nick Brown: There are no current plans to do so. However we have taken steps to increase both financial and training flexibilities for employers within the New Deal for Young People. Employers, especially small businesses, taking part in the programme have welcomed this increased flexibility.
	Employers have a direct input into the programme through the National Employment Panel. This group (formerly known as the New Deal Task Force) was formed in 1997 to ensure that employers, and other key customers, have a strong and permanent voice within the Department.
	This co-operative approach has contributed to the success of the New Deal. Nearly 95,000 employers have signed up, half of whom have never participated in an employment programme before. Many more have taken on New Dealers without formally signing up for the programme, and still more have helped to support New Deal in other ways by providing training or advice on the design of the programme.

Incapacity Benefit

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average period of payment was for claimants of incapacity benefit at 31 March.

Nick Brown: Information regarding the average duration of incapacity benefit claims at 31 March 2002 will not become available until early 2003. For the latest available information, I refer the hon. Member to the written answer I gave him on 26 April 2002, Official Report, column 472W.

Annual Leave

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average annual leave entitlement is for staff in his Department in 2002.

Ian McCartney: The average annual leave entitlements in the year 2002 will be:
	Staff in the grades AA to HEO 27 days per year
	Staff in grades SEO to UG6 30 days per year.
	The annual leave allowance for members of the Senior Civil Service is set by the Cabinet Office and continues to be 30 days.

Winter Fuel Payment

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many widowed women over 60 wrongly received a reduced level of winter fuel payment for the 2001–02 winter, owing to a mistaken assessment of two people living in the household in (a) Scotland and (b) the UK; and how many are awaiting receipt of the full payment.

Ian McCartney: Information available shows that 172 widows, identified through receipt of Widows Pension, had to be paid an additional £100 because they were the only eligible member of their household. One of these payments was in Scotland.

Industrial Injuries Benefits

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many (a) men and (b) women received the principal contributory industrial injuries benefits in each year since 1972.

Nick Brown: holding answer 1 July 2002
	The main industrial injuries benefit is Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit. This is a tax-free, non-contributory benefit payable to people who have become disabled as a result of an accident at work or as a result of an industrial disease.
	Details of the number of recipients of this benefit by gender since 1972 are in the table.
	
		Industrial injuries disablement benefit (IIDB) recipients by gender -- Thousand
		
			 Year All Males Females 
		
		
			 1971–72 203.6 184.6 19.0 
			 1972–73 202.4 182.8 19.5 
			 1973–74 200.6 181.0 19.5 
			 1974–75 201.5 181.6 19.9 
			 1975–76 201.6 181.9 19.7 
			 1976–77 201.8 181.8 19.9 
			 1977–78 200.4 180.2 20.2 
			 1978–79 198.2 177.7 20.5 
			 1979–80 195.8 175.3 20.6 
			 1980–81 191.6 171.5 20.1 
			 1981–82 189.1 169.1 19.9 
			 1982–83 188.0 168.1 19.9 
			 1983–84 188.7 168.8 19.9 
			 1984–85 188.2 168.2 20.0 
			 1985–86 185.9 165.9 19.9 
			 1986–87 185.5 165.1 20.4 
			 1987–88 188.8 167.9 20.9 
			 1988–89 192.6 170.1 22.5 
			 1989–90 196.3 172.3 24.0 
			 1990–91 200.3 174.7 25.6 
			 1991–92 204.3 176.8 27.4 
			 1992–93 212.4 181.6 30.8 
			 1993–94 225.6 191.4 34.3 
			 1994–95 235.2 197.1 38.1 
			 1995–96 249.2 206.6 42.6 
			 1996–97 257.8 211.9 45.8 
			 1997–98 269.1 221.9 47.2 
			 1998–99 278.2 228.3 49.8 
			 1999–2000 280.8 229.8 50.9 
			 2000–01 280.4 229.5 50.9 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Prior to 1986–87 annual data was collected from 1 October to 30 September. From 1986–87 data was collected by financial year.
	2. A person may be in receipt of IIDB for more than one condition.
	Source:
	Based on a 10 per cent. sample of IIDB clerical returns.

Benefit and Tax Credit Payments

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether benefit and tax credit claimants will be allowed to choose between (a) a card account at the Post Office, (b) a basic bank account and (c) another type of bank account, in order to continue to receive their benefit and tax credit payments; and whether the information available to benefit and tax credit claimants will include clear description of each of these options and will set out their advantages and disadvantages.

Malcolm Wicks: Yes.
	The Department and the Inland Revenue will be providing customers with all the information they will need (including details of the respective features of each type of account) to choose the account which is most appropriate for them.
	Around 85 per cent. of our customers already have access to a suitable account for receiving payments of benefits and tax credits. While we anticipate that most people will choose to have their money paid into an existing account or open a basic bank account, no one will be prevented from opening a card account at the Post Office if they wish.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Committee Mandates

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the mandate of the Committee for the European Refugee Fund is; how many times it has met over the last 12 months; what the UK representation on it is; what the annual cost of its work is to public funds; if he will list the items currently under its consideration; if he will take steps to increase its accountability and transparency to Parliament; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: The mandate for the Committee for the European Refugee Fund is set out in the Council Decision 2000/596/EC, OJL 252, 6.10.2000, that adopted the programme, and is available in the Library. The Committee meets three times a year on average.
	The United Kingdom (UK) representation usually consists of a member of the UK representation to the European Union plus a Home Office official from the Refugee Integration Unit. The Commission refunds travel and subsistence costs for one official from the UK for each Committee meeting. Up to three additional representatives can attend, and their expenses are met from the Home Office subsistence allowance. The purpose of the Committee is to monitor the implementation of the European Refugee Fund across the member states.
	The Council decision contains a reporting mechanism under which the Commission evaluates the implementation of the European Refugee Fund and submits a report to the Council and European Parliament. The reports are publicly available on the internet. In addition, details of projects selected for funding within the UK allocation of the fund are made available in the form of a written parliamentary answer on an annual basis.

Fingerprints/DNA Samples

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which organisations have access to (a) fingerprints and (b) DNA samples held by the police.

John Denham: holding answer 25 June 2002
	Under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (as amended) retained fingerprints and DNA samples can be used only for purposes related to the prevention or detection of crime, the investigation of an offence or the conduct of a prosecution. Fingerprints and DNA samples, and the profiles derived from them, which are held by or on behalf of police forces in the United Kingdom and Islands, may be accessed only by relevant law-enforcement authorities. Relevant law-enforcement authorities are listed in section 63A of the 1984 Act. They are:
	(a) a police force 1 ;
	(b) the national criminal intelligence service;
	(c) the national crime squad;
	(d) a Public Authority (not falling within paragraphs (a) to (c)) with functions in any part of the British islands which consist of or include the investigation of crimes or the charging of offenders;
	(e) any person with functions in any country or territory outside the United Kingdom which
	(i) correspond to those of a police force, or
	(ii) otherwise consist of or include the investigation of conduct contrary to the law of that country or territory, or the apprehension of persons guilty of such conduct;
	(f) any person with functions under any international agreement which consist of or include the investigation of conduct which is
	(i) unlawful under the law of one or more places,
	(ii) prohibited by such an agreement, or
	(iii) contrary to international law, or the apprehension of persons guilty of such conduct.
	1 The reference to a police force is a reference to any of the following:
	(a) any police force maintained under section 2 of the Police Act 1996 (c 16)(police forces in England and Wales outside London);
	(b) the Metropolitan police force;
	(c) the City of London police force;
	(d) any police force maintained under or by virtue of section 1 of the Police (Scotland) Act 1967 (c 77);
	(e) the police service of Northern Ireland;
	(f) the police service of Northern Ireland Reserve;
	(g) the Ministry of Defence police;
	(h) the Royal Navy regulating branch;
	(i) the Royal Military police;
	(j) the Royal Air Force police;
	(k) the Royal Marines police;
	(l) the British Transport police;
	(m) the States of Jersey police force;
	(n) the salaried police force of the Island of Guernsey;
	(o) the Isle of Man constabulary.

Immigration Applications

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on progress with the processing of immigration applications made under the Regularisation of Overstayers Scheme; and if it is expected that the assessment of all applications made under that scheme will be completed by April 2003.

Beverley Hughes: During the last financial year (2001–02) a sift of all outstanding applications made under the Regularisation Scheme for Overstayers was successfully completed, yielding a total of 1,033 easily identifiable grants under existing policy concessions.
	During the current financial year more detailed consideration is being given to the remaining cases. To date, 282 further grants have been identified, along with 81 refusals; 10,990 cases remain to be fully considered. The team assigned to dealing with these cases is currently under expansion, and individual caseworker output is gradually increasing with experience. It is anticipated that all applications made under the scheme will be assessed by April 2003.

EU Directives

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the EU directives relating to his Department which have been (a) amended and (b) repealed in 2002.

Bob Ainsworth: None of the European Union directives relating to the Home Office have been amended or repealed in 2002.

Public Protection Panels

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department by what criteria members of the public will be chosen for the strategic boards overseeing the multi-agency public protection panels; and if he will make a statement.

Hilary Benn: The multi-agency public protection arrangements exist to protect members of the public from potentially dangerous sexual and violent offenders in communities across England and Wales. I announced last week that the Government wanted members of the public to be represented in these arrangements.
	Adverts will be appearing in the press in the five areas which will be piloting this scheme (west Midlands, south Wales, Cumbria, Durham and Surrey), asking for members of the public to apply to sit on the strategic boards scrutinising and managing this work in their areas.
	Lay members will not be required to have formal educational qualifications but are expected to have:
	(i) an ability to understand complex information in written and numerical form;
	(ii) an interest in community and social issues with a track record of involvement in them;
	(iii) an ability to make appropriate decisions based on the available information;
	(iv) a capacity for emotional resilience, retaining sensitivity while dealing with tragic or painful situations. In particular, this includes an ability to understand the needs and feelings of victims of crime;
	(v) an ability to understand the complexity of human behaviour;
	(vi) good social skills and the ability to work effectively with people in groups and in formal meetings;
	(vii) an awareness of and commitment to equality and diversity;
	(viii) an ability to challenge constructively the views and assumptions of senior professionals; and
	(ix) an ability to maintain confidentiality appropriate to the circumstances and local protocols.
	In each of the areas in which this development is being piloted, lay members will be recruited using these criteria through a formal assessment procedure designed and administered by an occupational psychologist. Elected representatives and relevant professionals are not eligible for selection. All candidates will be subject to the usual criminal history checks and anyone who has committed a sexual or a violent offence, or any other offence not spent under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 will also not be eligible. We hope to make the first appointments later in the summer.

Criminal Records Bureau

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many persons are employed in the Criminal Records Bureau.

Hilary Benn: The number of staff employed by the Criminal Records Bureau is 871 with a further 117 seconded from other agencies and/or employed on contractual terms.

Asylum Seekers

Tony Worthington: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he plans to increase support for asylum seekers to full income support rates; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: The full national asylum support service support package is broadly equivalent to income support. Support for asylum seekers can include fully furnished accommodation. The costs of this together with associated utility bills and council tax are met centrally. Support levels for children here as part of an asylum seeking family are identical to the personal allowances for children in families on income support.

Asylum Seekers

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he is entitled to provide asylum support to persons who have won their asylum appeals but where the period since their asylum appeal was disposed of exceeds 28 days; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: In accordance with section 94(3) of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 and Regulation 2 of the Asylum Support Regulations 2000 (as amended), the national asylum support service support should end 28 days after an appeal is disposed of if it is successful and 21 days if it is not.

Asylum Seekers Accommodation Centres

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions his Department has had with BAA Lynton regarding the use of the former RAF Turnhouse site for an asylum seeker accommodation centre.

Beverley Hughes: The Home Office, through its agent, has been in discussion with the British Airport Authority Lynton regarding the former Royal Air Force Turnhouse site, initially on the availability of the site and subsequently as to the potential for using the site as an accommodation centre.

Asylum Seekers Accommodation Centres

Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what voluntary activity away from the sites of asylum accommodation centres he considers appropriate for residents of such centres; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: We expect most purposeful activity to take place on site at accommodation centres. Opportunities for voluntary activity away from the sites will depend upon local circumstances in exactly the same way as such voluntary activity is available to and taken up by asylum seekers who do not live in accommodation centres. Residents of accommodation centres will not be compelled to undertake voluntary work away from the sites.

Asylum Seekers Accommodation Centres

Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what contingency plans he has for the use of the facilities if the evaluation of the asylum accommodation centres show the centres are not performing satisfactorily;
	(2)  how he will evaluate the performance of asylum accommodation centres; and how long after the opening of the centres the evaluation will be completed.

Beverley Hughes: We set out the likely criteria for evaluating accommodation centres in the White Paper published on 7 February 2002 (Cm. 5387). We are still considering the details of the evaluation process.
	We expect the trial centres to be successful. If in the light of the evaluation of the trial there is a need to modify any aspect of the centres, we will address that at the time.

Asylum Seekers Accommodation Centres

Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions he has had with the Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs about compensation arrangements for residents living adjacent to Throckmorton airfield as a result of the combined impact of the foot and mouth disease burial site and the proposed asylum accommodation centre.

Beverley Hughes: My officials have had discussions with the Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) officials in connection with the proposed accommodation centre at Throckmorton airfield, near Pershore, Worcestershire. We do not anticipate grounds for compensation of this nature.

Asylum Seekers Accommodation Centres

Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many private sector sites have been offered to his Department for the proposed asylum accommodation centres; and for what reasons such sites are not being given further consideration.

Beverley Hughes: All sites, which have emerged as potentially suitable for accommodation centres, are being given consideration. In addition to the sties we have identified ourselves, a number have been put forward by potential bidders. We will not be putting into the public domain details of such sites unless and until they are considered to be a serious prospect for the siting of an accommodation centre.

Asylum Seekers Accommodation Centres

Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answer of 12 June 2002, Official Report, column 1308W, on asylum seekers accommodation centres, when he will place in the Library the documentation for the bidders conference.

Beverley Hughes: holding answer 2 July 2002
	A copy will be placed in the Library shortly.

Marina Brookes

John Cryer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he intends to take a decision on the application for indefinite leave to remain of Marina Brookes (Home Office ref: B1099565).

Beverley Hughes: The application was decided on 15 May 2002 and notification sent by first class recorded delivery on the same day.

Sex Offenders

Helen Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  who is notified of plans to allocate sex offenders allocated to areas other than those of their known offending;
	(2)  by what criteria and on what authority sex offenders are allocated to areas other than those of their known offending;
	(3)  what arrangements are put in place to monitor the movements of known sex offenders who are allocated to areas other than those of their known offending;
	(4)  when he will reply to the questions on sex offenders tabled on Wednesday 6 March, Ref. 42191.

Hilary Benn: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given to her by my hon. Friend the Member for Stretford and Urmston (Beverley Hughes) on 19 March 2002, Official Report, column 285W. I apologise for the delay in responding.

Extradition

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Czech citizens have been extradited over the last four years; how many of them were Roma; and for what kinds of offences.

Bob Ainsworth: holding answer 1 June 2002
	The information requested is as follows:
	
		
			 Year Surrenders to Czech Republic 
		
		
			 1998 — 
			 1999 — 
			 2000 1 
			 2001 4 
			  
			 Total 5 
		
	
	On information available, only one of those fugitives (who did not contest his extradition) was of Roma origin. Those concerned stood accused variously of theft, burglary, robbery and deception.

Road Traffic Offences

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions he has had with (a) the police, (b) the Lord Chancellor and (c) the Crown Prosecution Service on raising the tariff for serious road traffic offences.

Hilary Benn: holding answer 27 June 2002
	We are currently reviewing penalties for all road traffic offences. On 19 December 2000 we published a consultation paper. The paper dealt with the court sentencing powers for a wide range of road traffic offending including serious offending. The consultation exercise ended in March 2001. We are currently in the final stages of producing the Government's response to the consultation exercise on road traffic penalties. We hope to publish this shortly.
	This was an interdepartmental review involving officials from the Home Office, Lord Chancellor's Department, and the Department for Transport in which the views of the Lord Chancellor, the police and the Crown Prosecution Service were taken into account.

Bail Information

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many probation areas in England and Wales operated bail information schemes in the last year for which figures are available; in how many cases information on bail was provided to the courts, broken down by probation area; and in how many of these cases the court ordered conditional bail.

Hilary Benn: 36 areas provided bail information schemes to courts in 2001–02, although schemes in some areas will have been targeted at specific courts or court sittings and some courts within those areas will not have benefited from access to a scheme. The National Probation Directorate is currently considering how the overall scope of bail information schemes can be extended to provide courts with greater access to a scheme and to further develop the effectiveness of the bail information process. Work to identify qualitative performance measures will begin later this year.
	A return showing the numbers of bail information reports prepared in 2001 is in the table. Consideration of a bail information report will be only one of a range of factors which courts take into consideration when considering whether to order conditional bail and records are not kept of the number of such orders where a bail information report has been presented.
	
		Numbers of bail information reports prepared by the Probation Service during 2001
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 Avon 1 
			 Bedfordshire 0 
			 Cambridgeshire 2 
			 Cheshire 1,014 
			 Teesside 111 
			 Cornwall 9 
			 Cumbria 131 
			 Derbyshire 40 
			 Devon 91 
			 Dorset 302 
			 Durham 6 
			 Essex 3 
			 Gloucestershire 0 
			 Hampshire 0 
			 West Mercia 338 
			 Hertfordshire 28 
			 Humberside 634 
			 Kent 181 
			 Lancashire 198 
			 Leicestershire 139 
			 Lincolnshire 37 
			 Greater Manchester 715 
			 Merseyside 306 
			 Norfolk 18 
			 Northamptonshire 0 
			 Northumbria 101 
			 Nottinghamshire 0 
			 Thames Valley 401 
			 Somerset 15 
			 Staffordshire 346 
			 Suffolk 76 
			 Surrey 228 
			 West Sussex 140 
			 Warwickshire 230 
			 West Midlands 1,302 
			 Wiltshire 62 
			 North Yorkshire 0 
			 South Yorkshire 403 
			 West Yorkshire 1,991 
			 Dyfed/Powys 191 
			 Gwent 0 
			 North Wales 0 
			 West Glamorgan 9 
			 Middlesex 71 
			   
			 England and Wales 9,870

Animal Experiments

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what assessment his Department has made of the likely future level of scientific procedures on animals;
	(2)  what estimate his Department has made from applications for licences to perform scientific procedures on animals of the level of duplication in such procedures;
	(3)  what estimate his Department has made of the reduction in the number of scientific experiments on animals that has been achieved as a result of information sharing;
	(4)  what targets his Department has set for reducing the number of scientific procedures performed on animals.

Bob Ainsworth: The use of animals in experiments and other scientific procedures is strictly regulated by the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 which is widely regarded as the most rigorous piece of legislation of its type in the world. It offers a high level of protection to animals while recognising the need to use animals in research. It also requires the latest ideas and technology to be taken into account when deciding whether the use of animals is justified.
	The licensing system is demand led and the 1986 Act provides no mechanism by which to set absolute limits on the number of animals used. The Act requires that project proposals are assessed on a case-by-case basis and that licences are only granted where the benefits outweigh the costs and where there are no alternatives which either replace animal use entirely, reduce the number of animals needed, or refine the procedures to minimise suffering (the 3Rs). We must also be satisfied that the procedures are likely to achieve the stated objectives.
	The number of animal procedures carried out reflects the state of science and industry in the United Kingdom and developments in science rather than being an indicator of the effectiveness of the 1986 Act. The Home Office will, however, continue to implement its overall strategy to minimise the numbers of animals used by the rigorous application of the 3Rs.
	It is not possible to predict accurately the amount of scientific research and regulatory testing using animals which is likely to take place in future. However, there are indications that in most areas use of conventional animals will continue to decline, but that new molecular biology techniques are opening up new areas of genetic research which will lead to an increase in the use of genetically modified (GM) animals. In addition, new regulatory requirements, for example, the proposed European Union Chemicals Strategy, have the potential to increase the use of animals for human health and safety purposes.
	There is no information readily available to indicate the reduction in scientific procedures using animals achieved through sharing of information. The Government believe, however, that sharing of scientific research data is self-evidently in the interests of refining ad avoiding duplication of procedures, and remains committed to promoting such sharing by any practical means. To this end, in August 2000, we announced an inter-departmental concordat on data sharing. The concordat commits United Kingdom regulatory authorities to help resolve legal and other obstacles and encourage data sharing between clients and thereby reduce animal tests. Progress in implementing the concordat is currently under review.
	A programme of work involving the use of animals would not be licensed under the 1986 Act if it were known that it would entail unnecessary duplication of earlier work. Apart from some cases where there is need for deliberate replication of earlier work, in order to validate the original findings, we have no evidence that duplication of animal use takes place.

Private Finance Initiative

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answers to the hon. Member for Yeovil (Mr. Laws) of 18 December 2001, Official Report, columns 237–38W, and 24 October 2001, Official Report, column 288W, concerning the private finance initiative, what the main areas of savings are leading to the cost savings indicated for the (a) Ryehill, (b) Dovegate, (c) Forest Bank, (d) Parc, (e) Lowndham Grange and Altcourse prisons; and if he will make a statement.

Hilary Benn: The same main elements in savings have been accrued from each of the seven prisons designed, constructed, managed and financed by the private sector. The main elements are threefold: construction costs, operational costs and risk transfer.

Youth Offending

Phil Sawford: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action he is taking to tackle persistent youth offending.

Hilary Benn: We have given the courts new secure remand and tagging powers for 12 to 16-year-olds who repeatedly offend on bail. Both started in the 10 street crime priority areas on 22 April. Tagging started in the rest of the country on 1 June 2002 and secure remands will start there on 16 September 2002.
	We have also: delivered the Youth Justice Pledge by halving the time taken from arrest to sentence for persistent young offenders; funded the Youth Justice Board's intensive supervision and surveillance programmes for the most prolific offenders; and introduced the detention and training order for persistent and more serious young offenders.
	As a result of our youth justice reforms results published in June 2002 for the first group of young offenders dealt with in July 2000 show that the reconviction rate fell by 14.6 per cent. They exceeded the Public Service Arrangement target of a 5 per cent. reduction in juvenile reconviction rates by 5 per cent. by March 2004.

Shop Crime

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the estimated annual losses were to businesses in the Portsmouth, South constituency due to shop crime in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

John Denham: The Home Department does not collect information about losses as a result of shop crime. The number of offences of theft from shops recorded by the police in Hampshire for the 12 months ended 31 March 2001 was 9,674, which is 5 per cent. less than the previous year. It is not possible to identify offences relating only to the Portsmouth, South constituency.
	The survey of crime affecting retailers and manufacturers announced by my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary on 23 April 2002 will provide up-to-date information on crimes against retailers including estimates of losses incurred. The results are expected to be available next spring.

Yarl's Wood

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many of those who were detained at Yarl's Wood are detained (a) in a prison and (b) in an immigration detention centre; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  how many of those who were detained at Yarl's Wood (a) have subsequently been removed from the UK and (b) have since been granted refugee status or exceptional leave to remain; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: holding answer 2 July 2002
	Information about the number of detainees who have been removed is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost by an examination of individual case files.

Yarl's Wood

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the search of the Yarl's Wood site has been completed; and whether fatalities have been discovered.

Beverley Hughes: holding answer 2 July 2002
	Bedfordshire police completed their controlled clearance of the Yarl's Wood site on 24 May 2002. They are continuing with the forensic examination of the materials removed. To date, no evidence of fatalities has been found.

Hard Cases Fund

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many applications have (a) been made and (b) been successful to the hard cases fund; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  whether the hard cases fund used to support asylum seekers in exceptional circumstances is cash limited; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  what a grant made under the hard cases fund consists of; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: holding answer 2 July 2002
	Hard case support is provided under section 4 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999. This allows the Secretary of State to provide, or arrange for the provision of, facilities for the accommodation of certain classes of person. It is policy to provide full board accommodation. There is no facility to make any subsistence payments. It is open to anyone who believes they have a case for support under section 4 to apply for it.
	It is not possible to provide information on the number of applications received and accepted as this information is not routinely collected and to produce accurate figures would require a manual examination of all files held by the relevant section of the National Asylum Support Service (NASS). This could be done only at disproportionate cost.

West Midlands Police

John Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of police officers in each ethnic group resigned from the West Midlands police force in each of the last two years.

John Denham: I am sorry not to have provided an earlier answer. The information in the table has been provided by the chief constable of the West Midlands police (Sir Edward Crew QPM). The force has apologised for the delay in supplying it.
	The information provided covers the last two full years for which it is available (1999–2000 and 2000–01). The table shows the number of officers from each ethnic group who resigned, the number of resignations as a proportion of the total number of officers in that ethnic group and the proportion of total resignations by ethnic group.
	
		Resignations
		
			  White Black Caribbean Black other Indian Chinese Other All 
		
		
			 1999–2000
			 Number of full-time equivalent (FTE) officers at 31 March 1999 7,008.48 110 27 89.67 1 83.63 7,319.78 
			 Number of resignations 1 April 1999 to 31 March 2000 81 2 0 2 0 1 86 
			 Officers who resigned as percentage of FTEs 1.16 1.82 0 2.23 0 1.2 1.17 
			 Resigners' ethnicity as percentage of total resignations 94.19 2.33 0 2.33 0 1.16 — 
			 
			 2000–01
			 Number of FTE officers at 31 March 2000 6,886.89 112 29.6 98.38 1 86.63 7,214.5 
			 Number of resignations 1 April 2000 to 31 March 2001 99 2 1 2 1 2 107 
			 Officers who resigned as percentage of FTEs 1.44 1.79 3.38 2.03 100 2.31 1.48 
			 Resigners' ethnicity as percentage of total resignations 92.52 1.87 0.93 1.87 0.93 1.87 —

Crime and Policing (Wales)

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the levels of crime and police resources in (a) North Wales, (b) Dyfed-Powys, (c) South Wales and (d) Gwent police areas in each year since 1997.

John Denham: Crime in England and Wales fell by 21 per cent. between 1997 and 2000 (British Crime Survey 2001). Total recorded crime in Wales fell 16.5 per cent. between 1996–97 and 2000–01, taking account of changes in counting rules. Recorded crime in Wales since 1996–97 is set out in the table.
	
		
			 Police force area Number of recorded crimes Percentage change from previous year 
		
		
			 1996–97   
			 Dyfed-Powys 19,282 -4.6 
			 Gwent 38,296 14.8 
			 North Wales 41,691 -1.8 
			 South Wales 151,371 -0.8 
			
			 1997–98   
			 Dyfed-Powys 17,994 -4.3 
			 Gwent 47,043 -0.8 
			 North Wales 38,658 -7.9 
			 South Wales 128,811 -4.2 
			
			 1998–99 (new rules)(13)   
			 Dyfed-Powys 24,588 -0.8 
			 Gwent 58,738 -0.7 
			 North Wales 43,848 -5.4 
			 South Wales 134,820 -6.1 
			
			 1999–2000   
			 Dyfed-Powys 23,709 -3.6 
			 Gwent 60,132 2.4 
			 North Wales 44,606 1.7 
			 South Wales 127,040 -5.8 
			
			 2000–01   
			 Dyfed-Powys 22,878 -3.5 
			 Gwent 56,728 -5.7 
			 North Wales 47,708 7.0 
			 South Wales 111,131 -12.5 
		
	
	(13) Denotes crimes recorded using the expanded offence coverage and revised counting rules which came into effect on 1 April 1998.
	Government revenue grant for Welsh police forces since 1997 is set out in the table. This is provision for all policing activity, including crime.
	
		£ million 
		
			  Dyfed-Powys Gwent North Wales South Wales 
		
		
			 1997–98 42.1 56.5 60.8 137.3 
			 1998–99 42.4 58.2 61.5 141.0 
			 1999–2000 43.1 60.7 63.8 143.8 
			 2000–01 45.8 63.3 66.5 147.3 
			 2001–02 50.7 66.7 72.4 156.4 
			 2002–03 52.3 68.7 74.0 161.9 
		
	
	Provision includes Home Office principal formula police grant, crime fighting fund and rural policing grant and Department of Transport, Local Government and the Regions (DTLR) revenue support grant and national non-domestic rates.
	Under DTLR floors and ceilings arrangements, all forces were guaranteed a minimum increase in police and DTLR grants of 2.3 per cent. for 2002–03. Floors and ceilings are not applied by the National Assembly for Wales, but to ensure North Wales benefited from a minimum increase of 2.3 per cent, the Home Secretary agreed to make a special payment to North Wales police authority of £362,000. Crime fighting fund and rural policing grants are outside this arrangement.
	Figures for 2002–03 are not directly comparable with 2001–02 owing to the change in funding arrangements for the National Crime Squad/National Criminal Intelligence Service. On a like-for-like basis the comparable figures in 2001–02 for Dyfed-Powys, Gwent, North Wales and South Wales are £50.2 million, £65.8 million, £71.5 million and £154.3 million respectively.

Police Officers

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers there are in (a) the Lancashire constabulary, and (b) the Ribble Valley constituency.

John Denham: The information has been provided by the Chief Constable of Lancashire (Mrs. Pauline Clare, CBE). I am told that it is not possible to provide the number of police officers in the Ribble Valley as the constituency is split between the central and eastern divisions and these divisions each cover other areas as well as parts of the constituency. Police numbers for both divisions are provided.
	The table sets out police and civilian support staff strength for the force and for the central and eastern divisions for 31 January 2002. Lancashire constabulary had 69 more officers in January than in March 1997 and strength was at record levels.
	
		
			  Number of police officers(14) Number of civilian support staff(14) 
		
		
			 Lancashire constabulary 3,316 (15)1,409 
			 Central division 347 125 
			 Eastern division 544 179 
		
	
	(14) Strength figures are full-time equivalents
	(15) Civilian staff numbers are the latest available and are as at 30 September 2001

Police Officers

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers were employed in England and Wales as at 1 June.

John Denham: The latest available information on police numbers is for 31 January 2002 when there were 128,748 officers. This is 3,066 more than in March 2001 and is a record number of police officers.
	The increase in police strength reflects the impact of the Crime Fighting Fund (CFF), which is enabling forces in England and Wales to recruit 9,000 officers over and above previous recruitment plans in the three years to March 2003.

Belmarsh Prison

John Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action he has taken to ensure that keys are not taken out of HMP Belmarsh; what the cost was of the recent incident when keys left the prison; and if he will make a statement.

Hilary Benn: The Director of High Security Prisons has instructed the governor of Belmarsh, as well as the governors of the other high security prisons, to review the operation of their key management systems including the recently introduced key fob alarm system so as to ensure they prevent the removal of any keys from their prisons. Governors have been asked to report any possible deficiencies in the system, in order to enable required remedial action to be taken as soon as possible. The governor of Belmarsh has commissioned a disciplinary investigation into the recent incident at his prison.
	The cost of replacing the locks necessary as a result of the key being taken out of Belmarsh would normally have been approximately £55,000, but as the specification for the key has been upgraded since original installation at Belmarsh, the opportunity was taken to install the upgraded key at this time. This work incurred an additional cost of approximately £18,000, bringing the total cost to £73,000.

New Prisons

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department who will pay insurance for new prisons in England and Wales.

Hilary Benn: Insurance for new prisons in England and Wales designed, constructed, managed and financed by the private sector will be paid for by the contractor as part of the contract price.

Prison Building

David Wilshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the delay in signing the contract for the building of a privatised prison at Ashford (Middlesex).

Hilary Benn: holding answer 2 July 2002
	There has been a delay in signing the contract for the new prison at Ashford due to problems arising from insurance. Discussions are continuing between the contractor and the Prison Service with a view to solving these problems.

LORD CHANCELLOR

Civil Courts

Phil Sawford: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many courts he expects will (a) close and (b) be downgraded as a result of the proposals to modernise the civil courts; and which courts will be affected.

Yvette Cooper: Under the Courts and Tribunals Modernisation Programme the Court Service is developing new ways of delivering services to users. The current proposals involve introducing hearings in 37 locations which currently do not have a county court and closing one county court, Shoreditch.
	The purpose of this programme is a strategic consideration of the existing network of courts to increase the number of places where cases are heard. The effect of this will be the establishment of primary hearing centres as the principle venues for hearings supported by a network of full and part-time local hearing venues ensuring access to justice across England and Wales. All those courts which will operate as local hearing venues will continue to provide hearings for their local communities. Detailed plans are still being developed, and will depend on the funding available following the Government's spending review. They will also be subject to public consultation.
	The tables included in our report on "Modernising the Civil and Family Courts", show the detail of our proposal for the civil and family court network of the future. The report was published on 23 May and copies are in the Libraries of both Houses.

Civil Courts

Keith Vaz: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many courts will close to the public as a result of her proposals to modernise the civil courts.

Yvette Cooper: Under the Courts and Tribunals Modernisation Programme the court service is developing new ways of delivering services to users. This includes a strategic consideration of the existing network of courts. Current proposals involve holding part-time hearings at 37 new venues and closure of only one county court, Shoreditch. Detailed plans are still being developed, and will depend on the funding available following the Government's spending review. They will also be subject to public consultation.
	Details of the emerging strategy for the court estate were published in the "Modernising the Civil and Family Courts" report which was published on 23 May 2002 and placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Criminal Justice (Timeliness Targets)

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what further timeliness targets have been identified; which criminal justice departments are involved in this activity; and when an announcement will be made concerning the timeliness targets.

Yvette Cooper: We are working with the Home Office, Crown Prosecution Service and Youth Justice Board on targets for all adult defendants in the magistrates courts and for all defendants in the youth court, charged with crime. When these are settled an announcement will be made.

Youth Courts

Kate Hoey: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what plans the Department has to reduce the number of trials in youth courts that are adjourned.

Yvette Cooper: The Lord Chancellor wrote to all youth panel chairs in May 1997, encouraging them to scrutinise all request for adjournment by questioning and probing the reasons advanced in support. In response to the call from Government to speed up case management in our courts the Magistrates' Association produced a training course on effective case management entitled "Can We Get On Please". The Youth Court Bench Book issued in September last year to all youth justices includes a section on case management, an adjournment guide and check list. Sample surveys of cases in the youth court suggest that the proportion of defendants who had the case against them adjourned fell from 78 per cent. in 1997 to 74 per cent. in 2001.

Youth Courts

Kate Hoey: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what plans the Department has to take measures to discourage the tactical not guilty plea in youth courts.

Yvette Cooper: My Department has been involved in an interagency review of measures to reduce delay in the magistrates courts generally. One of the outcomes of this review was that last year the Justices' Clerks' Society and the Law Society both reminded their members of the need to draw to the attention of defendants the fact that in reaching a sentence the bench will take into account a timely plea of guilty. Further work is under way in respect to the Auld review.

Voting Methods

Ian Lucas: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what estimate she has made of the additional cost of holding an all-postal ballot in a nationwide election or referendum.

Yvette Cooper: No estimate has been made of the cost of holding a nationwide election or referendum by all-postal ballot.

Queen's Counsel

Keith Vaz: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many persons applied to take silk in the last five years; and what percentage were successful.

Rosie Winterton: The table shows the total number of applicants for silk in the last five years and the percentage of total awards made (excluding Honorary Silk):
	
		
			   1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 
		
		
			 Total applicants 511 553 506 456 429 
			 Total awards(16) 60 69 78 77 113 
			 Percentage of applicants granted the award of Queen's Counsel 11.74 12.48 15.4 16.9 26.3 
		
	
	(16) Excl. Honorary Silk

Queen's Counsel

Keith Vaz: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department when feedback is given to persons who apply for silk who are not successful.

Rosie Winterton: Applicants who have been unsuccessful in their application for silk may receive feedback at any time following publication of the list of successful candidates.

EU Directives

John Bercow: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will list the EU directives relating to his Department which have been (a) amended and (b) repealed in 2002.

Yvette Cooper: There have not been any.

EU Directives

John Bercow: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will list the EU directives and regulations that have been implemented through his Department in 2002; and what was the cost of each to public funds.

Yvette Cooper: The Council Regulation (EC) No. 44–2001 of 22 December 2000 on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters entered into force on 1 March 2002. Its impact on public funds is minimal.

Freedom of Information

Norman Baker: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will make a statement on plans to allow access to information about the environmental activities of business; and if this will extend to state-owned interests.

Michael Meacher: I have been asked to reply.
	We will shortly be consulting the public on proposals to replace the Environmental Information Regulations 1992 (SI 3240) as amended in 1998 (SI 1447).
	The new regulations will apply to public authorities and to some private bodies performing public administration functions in relation to the environment. They will include exemptions for certain categories of information, including information which is commercial in confidence.
	When a public authority receives a request for information, that authority must decide whether they regard the environmental information requested as a matter of commercial confidentiality. If they are satisfied that an exemption applies, then under the new Environmental Information Regulations, they will also apply the public interest test.
	Decisions as to whether information is commercial are subject to challenge in a court of law. In accordance with the new proposals the information commissioner will be able to consider whether public authority is following good practice and examine appeals against any refusal to supply information.

Family Proceedings (Contact Orders)

Margaret Moran: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will list each target set for his Department to increase the number of contact orders in family proceedings for each year since 1997.

Jacqui Smith: I have been asked to reply.
	The Department of Health has no such targets.

HEALTH

Northwick Park Hospital

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of improvements in service at Northwick Park hospital since 1999; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: Several assessments have been made at Northwick Park recently by the winter and emergency services team (WEST), the patient environment and action team (PEAT) and the commission for health improvement (CHI).
	WEST visited the trust on 13 December last year and were pleased to see a number of developments and innovation projects. These included:
	The relocation and expansion of the medical assessment unit
	The production of a performance improvement programme with local partners over the winter period leading to increased social care and acute medical bed capacity and a revised escalation policy
	The development of rapid access specialist clinics
	Improvements to bed management and site management.
	The trust has recently received a London modernisation award for the cardiology team as a result of the work to reduce delayed transfers.
	PEAT carried out its latest visit on 10 April this year and Northwick Park hospital has shown continued improvement in the hospital environment and now has green light status.
	The CHI completed its report on 23 October 2001 and found many areas of good practice particularly around the multidisciplinary collaborative care team and the ambulatory care and diagnostic service.

Mount Vernon Hospital

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what inspections of Mount Vernon hospital have taken place by NHS agencies in the last five years; and if he will publish their conclusions.

John Hutton: Since 1999, Mount Vernon hospital has received two visits from the patient environment and assessment team (PEAT) and a routine clinical governance review by the commission for health improvement (CHI).
	The PEAT results were published for the August 2000, March 2001 and August 2001 inspections and are available under the Hillingdon Hospitals National Health Service Trust at: http://www.cleanhospitals.com/ national_results/index.asp?menuID=nationalresults.
	The CHI report will be published shortly.

Ambulances

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average response time for emergency ambulances was for each hospital in Lancashire in each year since 1997.

Jacqui Smith: Information about emergency calls to the ambulance service is not available specifically for each hospital in Lancashire. Information about Lancashire Ambulance National Health Service Trust and all other ambulance NHS trusts, about the number of emergency calls and the proportion of emergency calls resulting in an ambulance arriving at the scene of the reported incident within the Government's target response times is contained in the Department's Statistical Bulletin "Ambulance Services, England 2000–01". A copy of the bulletin is in the Library and available at www.doh.gov.uk/public/ sb0115.htm.

EC Decisions

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the effects of Commission Decision 18 of 27 June 2001, 2002/I55/EC, OJ L54 of 25 February 2002, on current practice.

John Hutton: Decision 183 of the Administrative Commission on social security for migrant workers concerned the interpretation of the provisions of Regulation (EEC) 1408–71 relating to maternity care. Its effect is that health care services required in connection with pregnancy or childbirth shall be regarded as an immediately necessary benefit, provided on the basis of EU Form E111, during a temporary stay in another member state. This applies up to the beginning of the 38 week of pregnancy, provided that the reasons for the temporary stay are other than medical. From the 38 week, EU Form E112 concerning travel specifically for medical care, will be required.
	Current practice in the UK is to issue Form E112 for pregnant women wishing to receive ante-natal care or give birth in another member state. Guidance to this effect is contained in the Department's leaflet "Health Advice for Travellers" (available in the Library). We expect to issue a suitably revised version of the leaflet in the late summer.
	In respect of women from other member states presenting in the UK, current UK practice is already broadly in line with Decision 183 but guidance to the NHS will be amended as necessary.

Mixed Sex Wards

Evan Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer of 14 May 2002, Official Report, column 624W, on mixed sex wards, how many mixed sex wards there are in the NHS.

John Hutton: The information requested is not available in this format as compliance is measured on a trust by trust basis rather than on an individual ward level.
	The reasons for measuring at the trust level is because hospital wards generally care for both men and women. To provide the required levels of privacy and dignity for patients, wards are split into single sex bays, or single rooms, or otherwise configured to provide adequate segregation of gender. It is the responsibility of each National Health Service trust to determine the most appropriate configuration to meet their specific requirements.
	The Department has set three objectives which trusts must meet to be deemed compliant. These objectives refer to single sex accommodation and not single sex wards.
	The target set is for three objectives to be achieved in 95 per cent. of trusts by December 2002.
	The three objectives are:
	To ensure that appropriate organisational arrangements are in place to secure good standards of privacy and dignity for hospital patients;
	To achieve the Patient's Charter standard for segregated washing and toilet facilities across the NHS; and
	Provide safe facilities for patients in hospitals who are mentally ill which safeguard their privacy and dignity.
	Trusts are required to re-assess and report their position annually. This information has been collected through health authorities. Separate validation programmes are undertaken to ensure that information provided is robust and reliable.
	This is a very challenging target and we are working with the NHS to provide professional and technical support to ensure progress towards meeting this target continues.
	Guidance on maintaining privacy and dignity was issued to the service in 1997.

NHS Foundation Hospitals

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on what date the first NHS foundation hospitals will be identified.

David Lammy: The first wave of foundation trusts will be selected from among the cohort of national health service acute trusts that achieve three-stars in the performance ratings to be published in July. At this time we will publish a prospectus setting out how NHS trusts can apply for foundation status and the criteria that will be used to assess applications. Decisions on the first NHS Foundation Trusts will be made in the autumn, although their establishment will be subject to legislation.

Social Service Departments

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if he will amend the terms of the capacity grant paid to social service departments so that social services departments that perform well do not receive less than those with an average or poor performance; and if he will extend the time covered by the capacity grant;
	(2)  if he will review the terms of the capacity grant paid to social service departments to ease the situation with regard to delayed discharges from hospital; and if he will extend the present capacity grant from one year only.

Jacqui Smith: All local councils with social services responsibilities have received a share of this grant to improve services for those discharged from hospital. In 2001–2 and 2002–3 we have targeted extra resources on those councils with particularly severe problems in providing the range of services needed, and they have had more challenging targets for reducing delayed discharge. This approach has delivered over 1,000 hospital beds no longer occupied by people awaiting discharge by March 2002.
	For the future we intend to legislate to make councils responsible for meeting the costs to the national health service of delayed discharges where councils' intervention could prevent the delay, drawing on the experience of similar approaches in Scandinavia. Local councils that meet their responsibilities in reducing delayed discharges will not be disadvantaged. They will have the money to pay for patients in the NHS if they are delayed inappropriately or in the community if they are discharged appropriately.

Intermediate Health Care Services

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent developments have taken place in the Greater London area in intermediate healthcare services.

John Hutton: The thirty-two primary care trusts in London along with their social services departments and partner agencies are responsible for planning and commissioning intermediate care services. The local implementation teams for the older peoples national service framework are overseeing this process. Each care community in London has an intermediate care co-ordinator and most have a wide range of Intermediate care services, both beds and community places which they are working to ensure are co-ordinated to meet their local needs. A London wide network for these co-ordinators facilitates the sharing of good practise across London.
	Twelve capital projects in London have between them been allocated £10 million as part of the £66 million capital funding for intermediate care in 2002–3 and 2003–4. These schemes will be developed over the next two years and will by April 2004 have significantly increased the number of intermediate care beds available across London.

NHS (Surveys)

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he plans to introduce surveys similar to the NHS inpatients' surveys conducted this year for (a) outpatients and (b) other NHS organisations; and if he will make a statement.

David Lammy: The first inpatient survey, as announced in the NHS Plan, has been completed. It is anticipated that the roll-out programme presently being established, will be extended to cover outpatients. The programme will also provide information about the patient experience across primary care and within areas covered by national service frameworks.

NHS (Surveys)

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many hospital trusts have conducted NHS in-patients' surveys this year as part of the national programme outlined in the NHS Plan; what the total cost of this exercise has been; and if he will make a statement.

David Lammy: 176 hospital trusts undertook the first national health service in-patients' survey earlier this year to directly inform local service development and improvement. In line with the policy on devolution, individual trusts were responsible for running and funding their own surveys and cost of the survey will vary from trust to trust. This was a local exercise and we do not have information on the total cost of the surveys nationally.

NHS (Surveys)

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the results of the NHS in-patients' surveys conducted this year will be made available to the public; in what format they will be available; if patients will be able to compare ratings for their local hospital with other hospitals; and if he will make a statement.

David Lammy: The in-patient survey results will be made available to the public over the summer. The Department is also publishing the next set of hospital performance ratings in the summer and this will enable patients to compare the performance of national health service trusts.
	The in-patient survey results will be published locally by trusts and will be one of the features covered within the new patient prospectus, which will be published by primary care trusts in the autumn and delivered to every household.

NHS Employees

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much money was received by health authorities in each year since 1988 as a consequence of agreements with financial services companies to market their products to NHS employees.

John Hutton: This information is not held centrally.

National Service Framework

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he will set out his proposals for the national service framework for eyes, ears, teeth and feet.

Jacqui Smith: The national service framework (NSF) programme currently includes frameworks for mental health (1999), coronary heart disease (2000) the (national) cancer plan (2000), older people (2001) and diabetes standards (2001). The diabetes NSF delivery strategy is due to be published in 2002 and work is in hand on NSF for renal services, children's services and long-term conditions.
	These frameworks amount to a significant programme of quality improvement across the national health service. We have no plans to amend the programme at present.

Ashworth Hospital

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the terms of reference are for the education service within rehabilitation at Ashworth Hospital; and what targets have been established for the service.

Jacqui Smith: The terms of reference for the patients education department are:
	to develop a needs led service with regular curriculum reviews focusing on content and methods of delivery
	to ensure the clinical agenda is met in education activities by strengthening its interface with the care services.
	The rehabilitation service review completed in November 2000 recommended twenty-one action points, including the three key points outlined below, all of which have been implemented.
	Integration of the rehabilitation service with the clinical service
	Extension of on-ward rehabilitation service to meet individual patient needs.
	All rehabilitation services, including the education service, to become an integral part of the care programme approach.

Ashworth Hospital

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many lecturers were retained by Ashworth Hospital in each of the last five years; and how many patients there were in Ashworth Hospital in each of the last five years.

Jacqui Smith: The number of lecturers retained by the hospital and numbers of patients in the hospital's care in each year for the last five years is shown in the tables. The data provided for the current year reflects the change in the lecturers' contracts, in line with National Health Service terms and conditions.
	
		
			 Year Full time Lecturers Sessional Lecturers Patients 
		
		
			 1997–98 9 11 440 
			 1998–99 7 13 419 
			 1999–2000 7 10 417 
			 2000–01 5 7 408 
		
	
	
		
			 Year Full Time Lecturers Part Time Lecturers Patients 
		
		
			 2001–02 5 5 402

Ashworth Hospital

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the timescale is of the rehabilitation service review at Ashworth Hospital.

Jacqui Smith: The rehabilitation service review was completed in November 2000 and its recommendations have been implemented in stages. The final stage, which brought the terms and conditions of the lecturers in the patient education department into line with the National Health Service, was implemented in December 2001.

Prescription Pre-payment Certificates

Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will estimate the cost of allowing the purchase of the prescription pre-payment certificate on a monthly basis at one twelfth of the annual cost; and if he will make a statement.

David Lammy: If prescription pre-payment certificates were available on a monthly basis at one twelfth of the current annual cost, the monthly rate would be little more than a single prescription charge, which would be attractive to people on all levels of income. In addition to the costs of collecting the payments and pursuing payment from patients who defaulted on their payments, there would be a considerable loss of charge income and a risk of very significant additional costs to the drugs bill. There would also be additional workloads for doctors if people who currently pay individual prescription charges sought prescriptions for medicines which they currently purchase.

Prescription Pre-payment Certificates

Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will estimate the cost of including prescription pre-payment certificates within the scope of the health benefits low income scheme; and if he will make a statement.

David Lammy: The cost would depend on the extent of the reduction in the pre-payment certificate (PPC) fee offered through the national health service low income scheme and the number of people who currently purchase PPCs who sought and were entitled to help in this way. Additionally, there could be a loss of charge income and significant additional costs to the drugs bill if people who currently pay individual charges obtained a PPC via this route for prescriptions for medicines and other items which they currently purchase.

Prescriptions

Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what representations he has received regarding people on low incomes and their ability to afford their prescriptions; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  if he will review the arrangements for providing financial assistance in paying for necessary medication for patients; and if he will make a statement.

David Lammy: As a result of wide ranging exemption arrangements in England, around 50 per cent. of the population do not pay prescription charges and around 85 per cent. of prescription items are dispensed free of charge. Financial assistance in paying for medication is available to recipients of income support, income based jobseeker's allowance, many recipients of working families' tax credit and disabled person's tax credit and people who hold a national health scheme low income scheme exemption certificate for full help.
	We receive representations from time to time about the ability of people on low incomes to pay for their prescriptions, but we have no plans to change the arrangements other than in the light of changes to the tax credit arrangements.

Care Homes

Roger Berry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the new regulatory impact assessment for the national care standards for care homes for younger adults will be published.

Jacqui Smith: The regulatory impact assessment for care homes was placed in the Library on 21 January 2002.

Carers

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on progress towards implementing the national carers strategy requirement that general practitioners should have procedures in place to identify carers by April.

Jacqui Smith: Improvements in general practitioners (GPs) computer systems completed at the end of March 2002 mean that all GPs are able to record, as part of patient records, details of whether a person is a carer. They are encouraged to do so in order to facilitate the process of sign-posting carers to relevant services.

Carers

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he plans to publish the performance framework indicator for the number of carer assessments; if he will ensure that the assessments evaluate the proportion of carers assessed at the point of hospital discharge; and if he will make a statement.

Jacqui Smith: The performance indicator for 2000–01 for the number of informal carers receiving an assessment as a proportion of the total number of clients and carers receiving assessments was published in October 2001. Details of where assessments took place are not available.

Carers

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will set out the criteria against which progress in implementing the national carers strategy is monitored; by what means progress is reported to the House; and when progress was last reported.

Jacqui Smith: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave him on 9 July 2001, Official Report, column 344W. My hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Public Health (Ms Blears) summarised recent progress on implementing the national strategy for carers in a debate on 12 June 2002, Official Report, column 273WH.

Carers

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will set out the timetable for the establishment of a fund to support the development of carers services under the Carers and Disabled Children Act 2000.

Jacqui Smith: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave him on 17 June 2002, Official Report, column 152W.

Primary Care Trusts

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many primary care trusts had chief executives in post on 1 April, who were professionally qualified as general practitioners, dentists, pharmacists or opticians.

John Hutton: Of the primary care trust chief executives in post on 1 April 2002, 12 were professionally qualified as general practitioners, dentists, pharmacists or opticians.

Neurology

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the answer of 24 June 2002, Official Report, column 740W, regarding long-term health, if he will invite the (a) Neurological Alliance and (b) Association of British Neurologists to participate in the external reference group; and if he will make a statement.

Jacqui Smith: Nominations for membership of the external reference group (ERG) have been received from a wide range of stakeholders. We will consider these before appointing the group later this year. The multi- disciplinary nature of ERGs is the key to developing national service frameworks that deliver realistic improvements in services so members of the group are expected to be drawn from health and social care professionals and managers, service users and carers, voluntary organisations and representatives from other partner agencies.

NHS Direct

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many telephone calls have been received by NHS Direct from people living in Portsmouth; and if he will make a statement.

David Lammy: Information about calls from people living in Portsmouth has only recently been collected. The NHS Direct Hampshire & Isle of Wight site handled around 28,000 calls from people living in Portsmouth in the six months to 1 April 2002.

Mental Health

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the need for additional qualified staff to implement proposals in the draft Mental Health Bill; and what measures are being put in place to ensure that an adequate number of people with the necessary experience and qualifications are available.

Jacqui Smith: The financial and human resource consequences of the proposals in the draft Mental Health Bill have been estimated and are being considered as part of the spending review process.
	We are acting to increase the workforce available generally to mental health services. A workforce action team (WAT) was established to look at workforce, education and training issues of the mental health workforce. A mental health care group work force team has been established to take forward the recommendations of the WAT report.
	Now that the draft Mental Health Bill has been published, we will take forward plans to work with the professional bodies and other key national organisations on the implementation of the Bill, including workforce matters.

Mental Health

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many lay members of mental health tribunals had previously been users of mental health services.

Jacqui Smith: Members of the mental health review tribunal are judicial officers appointed by my noble Friend the Lord Chancellor. No information is held on whether applicants have or have not been users of mental health services.

Radiographers

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what plans he has to improve retention of radiographers in the NHS in London; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the impact on the NHS of resignations of radiographers in the Greater London region in the last year.

John Hutton: The NHS plan set targets to increase the NHS workforce. This will include radiographers throughout the country and within London. We recognise that a well-motivated workforce, able to balance their work and domestic responsibilities, will provide a better service to patients.
	The regional co-ordinator been seconded from the service since November 2000, to take forward the recruitment, retention and returner initiatives in the field of radiography and the other allied health professions (AHP).
	In 1999 Ministers launched the Improving Working Lives Standard (IWL) designed to enable staff to balance their home and work responsibilities as part of this work. A combined AHP and healthcare scientist retention campaign is currently being developed and will be launched in the summer. In addition, the HR strategy for AHPs was accompanied by a booklet called "Building Careers". The booklet illustrates the varied careers available to staff within AHP and the vital contribution they make to patient and client care.
	The Department does not collect information on the number of resignations of radiographers both in London and the rest of the country.

Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he will reply to the letter to him dated 3 May from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr. A Starkie.

Alan Milburn: A reply was sent on the 2 July.

Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he intends to reply to the letter to him dated 15 May from the right honourable Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mrs. Greenhalgh.

Alan Milburn: A reply was sent on 2 July.

Correspondence

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he will reply to the letters from the honourable Member for Maidenhead of 19 February and 25 April regarding a constituent, Mrs. Preston on the MMR vaccine and autism.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 2 July 2002
	A reply was sent on 3 July.

Free Influenza Injections

Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many free influenza injections have been given to pensioners in each quarter since the scheme was launched; and if he will make a statement.

Jacqui Smith: Flu immunisations are carried out between October and December each year.
	In 2000–01 4,965,370 aged 65 and over received their free influenza immunisation and 5,113,036 received their immunisation in 2001–02.

Disability Equipment Services

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what action his Department has taken in response to the recommendations made in the Audit Commission's Fully Equipped report on the provision of disability equipment services for older and disabled people; and if he will make a statement.

Jacqui Smith: Following up its 2000 report 'Fully Equipped', the Audit Commission published 'Fully Equipped 2002' on 27 June 2002. The latter recognises the steps the Government took in response to the first. As an initial response to the new report, I am asking the national support team for the integration of community equipment services to review its action plan in the light of the Commission's recommendations and to produce commissioning guidelines for community equipment services by the autumn. Since the first report was issued the process of modernising hearing aid services has progressed to the point that about a third of the country will be benefiting from a modernised service, including the provision of digital hearing aids, by the end of this financial year. Work is also underway to spread good practice across the country's wheelchair services.
	The report affords a welcome opportunity to: remind health and social services of the importance of orthotic, prosthetic, community equipment, wheelchair and audiology services; encourage commissioners of these services to act upon the recommendations; and highlight the importance of using appropriately the additional funding the Government made available for community equipment services.

Work-place Health

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the role of the Health Department Agency will be with respect to workplace health.

Hazel Blears: The health development agency (HDA) is a special health authority, working to improve the health of people and communities in England, in particular, to reduce health inequalities. In partnership with others, it gathers evidence of what works, advises on standards and develops the skills of all those working to improve people's health.
	Employment is a major health determinant. The focus for this year's work on employment and health will be exploring the evidence for the health impacts of changes in work status such as unemployment, incapacity, or retirement.
	A website for supporting standards for workplace health interventions and well-being is currently being constructed by the HDA. The site will provide a tool for employers and managers of businesses and public sector organisations to address workplace health in a sustainable manner based on the needs of staff and the capacity of the organisation. Furthermore, the site will act as a portal to other workplace health-related websites spanning human resource and general management, equality issues, occupational health, health and safety, environmental impact and corporate social responsibility. The website will go live during 'Health and Safety Week' in October 2002.
	The HDA works closely with the Department of Work and Pensions, and has been asked to act in an advisory capacity on specific projects. The HDA also advises the Department and the Health and Safety Executive as required on public health issues.

Cancer

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what support is given to cancer patients during their treatment.

Hazel Blears: As part of the implementation of the NHS Cancer Plan we are developing a supportive care strategy. The strategy will ensure that people affected by cancer are able to access the right professional support, treatment and help, from when cancer is first suspected through to death and into bereavement. As part of the strategy, the National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) has been asked to develop and publish evidence-based guidance on supportive and palliative care. The initial NICE findings will be available from autumn 2002 and will include guidance on psychological and social support for patients and carers.

University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement as to whether the NHS will be making an enhancement to the pension arrangements for the chief executive of the University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust when he retires; and how much this will amount to.

David Lammy: holding answer 10 April 2002
	The chief executive of the University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire National Health Service Trust resigned voluntarily and I am advised that the trust will not be making an enhancement to the pension arrangements.

University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether pressure was put on the chief executive of the University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust by (a) Ministers and (b) the NHS executive to resign.

David Lammy: holding answer 10 April 2002
	I am advised by the University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire National Health Service Trust and officials at the NHS West Midlands regional office that the chief executive of the trust resigned voluntarily.

University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement as to whether the NHS will be paying (a) redundancy pay, (b) compensation and (c) an ex-gratia payment to the Chief Executive of the University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust when he retires; and how much this will amount to.

David Lammy: holding answer 10 April 2002
	The chief executive of the University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust is an employee of that organisation. The terms of his leaving his employment are for the trust board to determine within employment law and with regard to the Department's guidance.

University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement as to whether the Chief Executive of the University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust will be offered another post within the NHS following his retirement.

David Lammy: holding answer 10 April 2002
	Executive appointments within the national health service are a matter for the employing body concerned. All appointments should be made on merit and should take into account relevant factors that might bear upon the capability of candidates.

University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost to date is in (a) salaries paid, (b) management costs and (c) other related costs arising out of the suspension of consultants at the University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust.

David Lammy: holding answer 10 April 2002
	The total cost incurred by the University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust in regard to the suspension of Mr. Barros D'Sa is £219,563. This cost includes elements relating to the salary of the suspended consultant, costs of locum cover, the setting up of an Inquiry Panel in accordance with HC(90)9, legal and court costs and mediation meeting costs.
	The approximate cost incurred by the trust in regard to the suspension of Miss Briony Ackroyd to date is £467,387 based on legal costs, locum costs and salary.
	The approximate cost incurred by the trust due to the suspension of Dr R K Mattu is £57,000 based on legal costs, locum costs and salary.

Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health who the members of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation are; and what their institutional and commercial affiliations are.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 2 May 2002
	The information requested is available in the Library.

Smallpox Vaccine

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he was informed, at the time of signing the contract with Powderject, that (a) the manufacturing would be sub-contracted to a further company and (b) it would be undertaken outside the UK.

John Hutton: holding answer 8 May 2002
	Yes. The Department knew in advance of awarding the contract that PowderJect would not be the direct manufacturer and that the vaccine would be manufactured in Germany by PowderJect's partner company, Bavarian Nordic.

Smallpox Vaccine

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health for what reasons the Powderject contract for smallpox vaccines was handled as a matter of national security; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: holding answer 8 May 2002
	I refer the hon. Member to answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for North Durham (Mr. Jones) on 15 May 2002, Official Report, column 727.

Public Appointments

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what action is being taken to encourage disabled people to stand for public appointments.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 13 May 2002
	The Government are committed to encouraging people from all sections of society to participate in public life, particularly those from under-represented groups. Specific goals and objectives to increase the number of disabled candidates appointed to public bodies which come under the auspices of the Department were included in 'Public Bodies: Opening up Public Appointments 2002–2005' a copy of which is in the Library.

Mental Health (Young People)

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he last met the Secretary of State for the Home Department to discuss child and adolescent mental health services for young offenders; and if he will make a statement on future mental health provision for young offenders.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 14 May 2002
	Ministers last met to discuss child and adolescent mental health services at a bi-lateral ministerial meeting on 6 February. The main focus of provision is the ongoing programme to improve the availability and quality of child and adolescent mental health services in accordance with the national development strategy, backed by £85 million of targeted funding, 1999- 2002. The aim is for all local services to be able to respond appropriately to the range of mental health demands from young people, including those arising within the youth justice system, for example through the work of youth offending teams. Good progress is also being made to provide (by means of conversion of an existing facility) a new 24-bedded unit for young people with severe mental health problems requiring treatment in conditions of security. This is part of new arrangements for the national commissioning of adolescent forensic mental health services, including also central revenue support for the two existing national health service units and the assessment of further requirements for secure places. Mental health provision for young offenders will also be considered under the relevant strand of the planned children's national service framework on which work has recently started.

Folic Acid

Helen Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the Food Standards Agency will report its findings on the results of mandatory fortification of flour with folic acid.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 21 May 2002
	The Food Standards Agency Board considered the issue of folic acid and the prevention of disease at their open meeting on 9 May 2002. A note of the discussion has been placed on the agency website at www.food.gov.uk/multimedia/ pdfs/paperfsa020601.pdf.
	The agency will shortly write to UK health ministers with advice arising from the discussion.

Psychiatric Care

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to encourage people to train in psychiatric care.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 24 May 2002
	The mental health care group work force team has set up a sub-group on recruitment and retention. The purpose of the sub-group is to encourage more people to work in mental health.
	We also encourage medical staff to develop more rounded experience, and include an element of psychiatry in their training. Psychiatry is already a core part of the training of trainee doctors. The requirements for the new social work qualification, being introduced in 2003, requires students to undertake specific learning and assessment in a number of key areas including mental health.

Ashford and St. Peter's Hospitals NHS Trust

David Wilshire: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how much extra funding will be made available to the Ashford and St. Peter's Hospitals NHS Trust to enable it to implement its franchise plan;
	(2)  how many extra (a) beds and (b) staff will be provided by the implementation of the Ashford and St. Peter's Hospitals NHS Trust franchise plan.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 2 July 2002
	The franchise plan for Ashford and St. Peter's Hospitals National Health Service Trust does not make any commitment to extra staff and beds. The plan makes proposals for improving recruitment at the trust to ensure existing vacancies are filled. It also states that a review of the provision of services between the two sites will take place to ensure resources are used effectively.
	No additional funding will be provided centrally to the trust to implement the plan.

Ashford (Middlesex) Hospital

David Wilshire: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when Ashford (Middlesex) Hospital accident and emergency department was downgraded to an emergency department.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 2 July 2002
	The merger of Ashford and St. Peter's hospitals in 1998 to create the Ashford and St. Peter's hospitals national health service trust provided an opportunity to review clinical service provision between the two hospitals. This was necessary to ensure the safe delivery of services in the light of internal and external priorities, such as junior doctors' hours, increasing sub-specialisation and clinical governance. For this reason the decision was taken, after public consultation, to treat all surgical and trauma emergencies at St. Peter's hospital and maintain an emergency unit at Ashford hospital. This came into effect on 2 October 2000.

Teenage Pregnancy

Peter Pike: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the teenage pregnancy rate in Burnley was at the latest date for which figures are available.

Ruth Kelly: I have been asked to reply.
	The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from John Pullinger to Mr. Pike, dated 3 July 2002
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent question asking what the teenage pregnancy rate was in Burnley at the latest date for which figures are available. I am replying in his absence.(65545)
	The latest available figures are for 2000. In that year the under 18 conception rate for Burnley CD was 49.0 per 1,000 female population aged 15–17.